44 



AMERICAN MEDICINAL BARKS. 



Fig. 40. 



-White ash (Fraxinus americana), 

 trunk. 



Description of bark.— Moosewood bark occurs in long, stringy, or quilled 

 pieces, light brown or grayish brown on the outside, slightly wrinkled length- 

 wise, marked here and there with 

 warty excrescences and an occasional 

 patch of lichen growth, the inside 

 straw colored and smooth. The bark 

 is exceedingly tough and fibrous, and 

 can not be broken. The odor is rather 

 strong and aromatic, and the taste 

 pungent and acrid. 



Prices and uses. — Moosewood bark 

 brings from 5 to 10 cents a pound. 



It has emetic and laxative proper- 

 ties, and in decoction is used as a 

 sudorific and expectorant. The fresh 

 bark applied externally is very irri- 

 tating to the skin, causing redness 

 and blisters. 



WHITE ASH. 



Fraxinus americana L. 



Synonyms.— Fraxinus alba Marsh; 

 Fraxinus acuminata Lam. 



Other common names. — Ash, Ameri- 

 can white ash, cane-ash. 



Habitat and range. — The white ash 

 is native in rich woods, occurring from Nova Scotia to Minnesota, south to 

 Florida and Texas, but chiefly in the Northern States and Canada. 



Description of tree. — This tree, a 

 member of the olive family (Oleacese), 

 sometimes attains a height of 120 feet 

 or so, usually, however, from 60 to 80 

 feet, the older trees with gray, deeply 

 furrowed bark (fig. 40), and smooth, 

 greenish gray branches. The leaf buds 

 are rust colored, and the white ash 

 is one of the latest trees to put out 

 leaves in the spring. The leaves meas- 

 ure about 12 inches in length and con- 

 sist of 5 to 9 leaflets ; these are oval 

 or lance-shaped oblong, the margins 

 entire, the apex pointed, dark green 

 above and pale green or silvery be- 

 neath, or sometimes hairy, 3 to 5 

 inches long, and somewhat less than 

 half as wide (fig. 41). In autumn 

 they change to yellow, mottled with 

 green, and finally turn black. The 

 small, whitish green flowers are ar- 

 ranged in loose clusters, appearing from about April to June, and the fruits 

 which follow are in the form of clustered winged seeds, or "samaras" (fig. 

 41), which remain on the branches for a long time. Each samara is from 

 139 



Fig. 41.- 



-White ash (Fraxinus americana), 

 leaves and fruits. 



