White ash, American ash

This 15 to 20 m tall tree has a straight trunk that is bare over most of its length. Its bark is light grey or brownish and furrowed into firm intersecting ridges in a regular diamond pattern. Its twigs are shiny and grey or greenish-brown. Twigs over one year old are covered in a thin, greyish, peeling, waxy coating. Its leaves are 20 to 35 cm long. Their upper surface is darker green than their under surface. They are composed of 5 to 9 hairless leaflets. Each leaflet has very fine teeth and is borne on a 15 mm long stalk. Of all our ashes, this is the one with the most clearly defined leaflets. The flowers are grouped in clusters. The fruit is a long key with one wing that encloses only the tip of the cylindrical seed. The fruit is grouped in clusters.