THE ASHES : THEIR CHARACTERISTICS AND MANAGEMENT. 
19 
REPRODUCTION. 
Ash. reproduces itself well by seed and by sprouting from stumps 
of trees cut (PL XIV), the first, however, being by far the most 
important in perpetuating the species. 
SEED PRODUCTION AND DISSEMINATION. 
Ash of any species, in any region where it is common, usually seeds 
freely about every other year, and bears some seed almost every 
year. Exceptionally heavy crops occur at intervals of from three 
to five years. Not all ash trees are capable of bearing seed, since 
species of the white and green ash groups are dioecious; that is, male 
and female flowers are borne on separate trees and seeds occur only 
on the female trees. Trees in the open are apt to seed when from 
two to three inches in diameter and from 10 to 20 feet high, being 
only 10 years old, or even less. In dense stands ash commonly seeds 
but little until the stand is from 30 to 50 years old and is beginning 
to thin out. Small-crowned, suppressed, intermediate, and co- 
dominant trees produce little or no seed; dominant, large-crowned 
trees and open-grown trees are prolific seeders. Those of the green 
ash group are the most prolific, seeding when younger and smaller, 
and more frequently and heavily. White ash is next in this respect 
and black ash last. 
The lightness of ash seed and its long membranous wing allow it 
to be carried long distances by the wind. Of the important species 
green ash is disseminated most widely by the wind, white ash is next, 
and black ash last. The distance depends largely on the weight of 
the seeds, which is given in Table 5. 
Table 5, — Weight of ash seed of different species. 
Number of seed per pound.- 
Remarks. 
Species. 
Low. 
High. 
Average. 
Fraxinus americana and F. biltmoreana i — 
F. lanceolata and F. pennsylvanica 2 
F. nigra, F. .excelsior, and F. quadrangulata . 
8,500 
12,000 
6,000 
11,500 
20,000 
8,000 
10,000 
16,000 
7,000 
14, 000 
10,000 
3,500 
Seed and kernels float in 
water. 
Seed (with wing) floats in 
water, but kernels sink. 
3,000 
4,000 
1 Biltmore averages the heavier of the two. 
2 Pennsylvanica averages the heavier of the two. 
GERMINATION AND SEED-BED REQUIREMENTS. 
There is great variation in the germinative characteristics of the 
different species of ash. Experiments * with good, sound, untreated 
1 Seed planted in flats in the Arlington Experiment Station greenhouse in Jan., 1913. 
