Virginia Tech Dendrology

green ash Oleaceae Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marshall symbol: FRPE
Leaf: Opposite, pinnately compound with 7 to 9 serrate leaflets that are lanceolate to elliptical in shape, entire leaf is 6 to 9 inches long, green above and glabrous to silky-pubescent below.
Flower: Species is dioecious; light green to purplish, both sexes lacking petals, females occuring in loose panicles, males in tighter clusters, appear after the leaves unfold.
Fruit: A single-winged, dry, flattened samara with a slender, thin seed cavity, maturing in autumn and dispersing over winter.
Twig: Stout to medium texture, gray to green-brown and either glabrous or pubescent, depending on variety; leaf scars are semicircular to flat across the top, with lateral buds sitting on top of leaf scar (not down in a in notch as with white ash).
Bark: Ashy gray to brown in color, with interlacing corky ridges forming obvious diamonds; older trees may be somewhat scaly.
Form: A medium sized tree to 70 feet tall with a poorly formed bole and an irregular to round crown.
Looks like: white ash - black ash - Carolina ash - pumpkin ash

Additional Range Information: Fraxinus pennsylvanica is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. Download the full-size PDF map.
More Information: Fall Color - Wood
External Links: USDAFS Silvics of North America - USDAFS FEIS Silvics - USDA Plants Database - Horticulture Information - USDAFS Forest Products Lab
All material 2025 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information