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Black Ash

Fraxinus nigra

Traditional Indigenous Names 8

Cree: Kakitéwi Maskominátik
Ojibwe: Baapaagimaak
Dakota: Pse khti chan sapa
Michif: Li frenn nwayr

Summary from Wikipedia 9

Fraxinus nigra (black ash) is a species of ash native to much of eastern Canada and the northeastern United States, from western Newfoundland west to southeastern Manitoba, and south to Illinois and northern Virginia. Formerly abundant, as of 2014 the species is threatened with near total extirpation throughout its range, as a result of infestation by a parasitic insect known as the emerald ash borer.

Easy identifiers 8

One way that you can identify a Black Ash from a green ash is by looking at the leaflets on each, Black Ash leaflets have no stalk, and the leaflet seems to be joined right to the main stem of the whole compound leaf. Black Ash also have opposite branches and grow in wet areas where other types of ash do not usually grow.

Form 8

Medium-to-large deciduous tree with narrow open crown.

Bark 8

Greyish, scaly, shallow-furrowed into soft, often spongy, ridges.

Twigs 8

Opposite, round, stout, smooth, grey. Terminal bud about 4 - 10 millimetres (1/4 inch) long, dark brown to black, pointed with two large lateral scales; lateral buds smaller, nearly circular. Leaf scars heart-shaped to nearly circular, prominent, with a line of prominent bundle scars following contour of leaf scars. Lenticels elongated, yellowish-to-dark brown.

Leaves 8

Opposite, compound, 15 - 30 centimetres (10 - 16 inches) long composed of 7 to 11 lance-shaped, fine-toothed leaflets 10 - 14 centimetres (3 - 5 inches) long, stalkless and arranged in pairs.

Flowers 8

Before leaves, small, in clusters.

Fruit 8

Single, dry, with an elongated wing 2.5 - 4 centimetres (1 - 1 1/2 inches) long, blunt at both ends.

Occurrence 8

Southeastern Manitoba to Lake Manitoba along stream banks and in moist habitats.

Fun facts 8

Black Ash fiber can easily be split which makes its wood useful for weaving baskets; Indigenous peoples used long strips of Black Ash wood to make baskets for food gathering.

Sources and Credits

  1. (c) Manitoba Forestry, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Manitoba Forestry
  2. (c) Derek, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Derek
  3. (c) Eric Knopf, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Eric Knopf
  4. (c) Eli Sagor, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), https://www.flickr.com/photos/esagor/17342346416/
  5. (c) Owen Clarkin, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Owen Clarkin
  6. (c) Sara Rall, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Sara Rall
  7. (c) José María Escolano, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/valdelobos/7007171413/
  8. (c) Manitoba Forestry, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
  9. Adapted by Manitoba Forestry from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraxinus_nigra

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