FIELD ID CHARACTERISTICS:
Samaras long and very narrow. Leaves and twigs smooth.
Synonym(s): Fraxinus campestris, Fraxinus darlingtonii, Fraxinus lanceolata, Fraxinus smallii
Description: Medium to large deciduous tree up to 24 m, generally with a single trunk.
Leaves: Opposite, pinnately compound leaves, 15 to 23 cm long. Contain 5 to 9 oval or lance-shaped toothed leaflets, light green beneath. Seedling leaves are often not compound.
Flowers/Fruit: Flowers inconspicuous with male and female flowers on separate trees. Fruit is a long, very narrow, light green samara. Flowers April/May; fruits August to October.
Habit and Range: Low areas, natural levees, along brownwater rivers and in bottomlands and swamps. Found statewide but less commonly in the Mountains. This has been the most widely distributed of the ashes, but the emerald ash borer strongly attacks this species, causing much mortality.
COMMON CONFUSIONS:
Fraxinus pennsylvanica (green ash) can be difficult to distinguish from F. caroliniana (Carolina ash) without fruit, especially in the Coastal Plain where both species are common. Note opposite branches and twigs that are more slender in Fraxinus spp. (ash) than Carya spp. (hickories), which have similar compound leaves, but alternate branches and nuts for fruits.
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