Fraxinus

{{Short description|Genus of plants}} {{Good article}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}} {{Automatic taxobox |image = Koeh-062.jpg |image_caption = ''Fraxinus ornus'' 1862 illustration<ref>Franz Eugen Köhler, Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen</ref> |display_parents = 2 |parent_authority = |taxon = Fraxinus |authority = L.<ref name="GRIN">{{cite web |url=http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/genus.pl?4752 |title=''Fraxinus'' L. |work=Germplasm Resources Information Network |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |date=3 April 2006 |access-date=21 August 2016}}</ref> |synonyms_ref = <ref name="POWO"/> |synonyms = * ''Ornus'' Boehm. * ''Fraxinoides'' Medik. * ''Mannaphorus'' Raf. * ''Calycomelia'' Kostel. * ''Leptalix'' Raf. * ''Ornanthes'' Raf. * ''Samarpses'' Raf. * ''Aplilia'' Raf. * ''Meliopsis'' Rchb. * ''Petlomelia'' Nieuwl. }}

'''''Fraxinus''''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|f|r|æ|k|s|ᵻ|n|ə|s}}), commonly called '''ash''', is a genus of plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae,<ref>{{cite book |title=Western Garden Book |year=1995 |pages=606–07 |publisher=Sunset Books |edition=6th |isbn=978-0-376-03850-0}}</ref> and comprises 45–65 species of usually medium-to-large trees, most of which are deciduous (dropping their leaves in autumn), although some subtropical species are evergreen. The genus is widespread throughout much of Europe, Asia, and North America.<ref name="POWO">{{cite web |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/results?q=Fraxinus |title=Fraxinus |work=World Checklist of Selected Plant Families |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>

The leaves are usually opposite, and mostly pinnately compound (divided into leaflets in a feather-like arrangement). The seeds, known as "keys", are botanically fruits of the type called samara. Some species are dioecious, having male and female flowers on separate plants.

Ash wood is strong and elastic, and used for the handles of tools. Musical instrument makers use it for electric guitars and for drum shells. The Morgan Motor Company makes the frames of sports cars from ash wood. In Greek mythology, the Meliae were the nymphs of ash trees.

== Etymology == The tree's common English name, "ash", derives from the Old English ''æsc'', from the Proto-Indo-European name for the tree, while the name of the genus originated in Latin ''frāxinus'', from a Proto-Indo-European word for birch. Both words also meant "spear", as ash wood was used for shafts.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tzU3RIV2BWIC |title=Encyclopedia of Indo-European culture |editor1-first=J. P. |editor1-last=Mallory |editor2-first=Douglas Q. |editor2-last=Adams |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=1997 |isbn=978-1-884964-98-5 |page=32}}</ref>

== Description ==

The leaves of ash trees are usually opposite (rarely in whorls), and mostly pinnate. The seeds, known as "keys", are botanically single-winged fruits of the type called samara. Most ''Fraxinus'' species are dioecious, having male and female flowers on separate plants. The male flowers have two stamens. If a calyx is present, it has four lobes; if there is a corolla, it has four lobes or four petals, which are white or pale yellow.<ref name="IDS">{{cite web |title=Fraxinus L. |url=https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/fraxinus/ |publisher=International Dendrology Society |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=160 heights=160> File:NarrowleafAsh.jpg|Leafy shoot of ''F. angustifolia'' File:Ash flower.JPG|Flowers of ''F. excelsior'' File:EurAshSeeds.jpg|Winged fruits (samaras) of ''F. excelsior'' </gallery>

== Evolution == === Fossil history === The oldest fossils that are clearly ''Fraxinus'' are from the Middle Eocene (49–39 million years ago) of southeast North America, including the extinct species ''F. wilcoxiana''.<ref name="Hinsinger 2013"/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Call |first1=Victor B. |last2=Dilcher |first2=David L. |title=Investigations of angiosperms from the Eocene of southeastern North America: samaras of Fraxinus wilcoxiana Berry |journal=Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology |volume=74 |issue=3-4 |date=1992 |doi=10.1016/0034-6667(92)90010-E |pages=249–266 |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/003466679290010E |access-date=11 October 2025|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Fossil pollen of ''F. angustifolia'' is known from the Upper Miocene (12 million years ago) of Europe.<ref name="Hinsinger 2013"/> ''F. oishii'' winged fruits have been found in the Middle Miocene of Korea.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jung |first1=Seung‐Ho |last2=Lee |first2=Seong‐Joo |title=Fossil‐Winged Fruits of Fraxinus (Oleaceae) and Liriodendron (Magnoliaceae) from the Duho Formation, Pohang Basin, Korea |journal=Acta Geologica Sinica - English Edition |volume=83 |issue=5 |date=2009 |doi=10.1111/j.1755-6724.2009.00113.x |pages=845–852 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1755-6724.2009.00113.x |access-date=11 October 2025|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

=== Taxonomy === [[File:Fraxinus ornus JPG1b.jpg|thumb|upright|''Fraxinus ornus'']]

The genus ''Fraxinus'' was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753. The name remains accepted by taxonomists.<ref name="IRMNG">{{cite web |title=Fraxinus Linnaeus, 1753 |url=https://www.irmng.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1044529 |access-date=1 October 2025}}</ref> Multiple authors have described other tree genera that are synonymous with ''Fraxinus'': ''Ornus'' by the German botanist and physician Georg Rudolf Boehmer in 1760; ''Fraxinoides'' by the German physician Friedrich Kasimir Medikus in 1791; ''Mannaphorus'' by the French polymath Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1818; ''Calycomelia'' by the Czech {{ill|Vincenz Franz Kosteletzky|de}} in 1834; ''Leptalix'', ''Ornanthes'', ''Samarpsea'' (misspelt) and ''Samarpses'', ''Apilia'' and ''Aplilia'' by Rafinesque, all in 1838; ''Meliopsis'' by the German botanist Ludwig Reichenbach in 1841; and ''Petlomelia'' by the Belgian priest Julius Nieuwland in 1914.<ref name="IRMNG"/>

=== External phylogeny === The Angiosperm Phylogeny Group has classified ''Fraxinus'' as part of the Oleaceae (the olive family of flowering woody plants), within the order Lamiales (the mint order, including many aromatic herbs).<ref name="APG4">{{cite journal |last=Angiosperm Phylogeny Group |year=2016 |title=An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG IV |journal=Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society |volume=181 |issue=1 |pages=1–20 |doi=10.1111/boj.12385 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wallander |first1=Eva |last2=Albert |first2=Victor A. |title=Phylogeny and classification of Oleaceae based on rps16 and trnL‐F sequence data |journal=American Journal of Botany |volume=87 |issue=12 |date=2000 |doi=10.2307/2656836 |pages=1827–1841 |url=https://bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2307/2656836 |access-date=11 October 2025|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

{{clade |label1=Lamiales |1={{clade |1=Plocospermataceae |2={{clade |1={{clade |1=Carlemanniaceae |label2=Oleaceae |2={{clade |1=Forsythieae, etc |2={{clade |1=Jasmineae |label2=Oleeae |2={{clade |1=''Syringa'', ''Ligustrum'' |2={{clade |1=''Comoranthus'', ''Schrebera'' |2={{clade |1='''''Fraxinus''''' |2=''Olea'' (olive), other genera }} }} }} }} }} }} |2=''many other families'' }} }} }}

=== Internal phylogeny === Species are arranged into sections identified by phylogenetic analysis of clades within the ''Fraxinus'' genus:<ref name="Wallander 2008">{{cite journal |last=Wallander |first=Eva |title=Systematics of Fraxinus (Oleaceae) and evolution of dioecy |journal=Plant Systematics and Evolution |volume=273 |issue=1–2 |date=2008 |doi=10.1007/s00606-008-0005-3 |pages=25–49 |bibcode=2008PSyEv.273...25W |url=https://www.oleaceae.info/publications/Wallander2008.pdf}}</ref><ref name="Hinsinger 2013">{{cite journal |title=The Phylogeny and Biogeographic History of Ashes ( Fraxinus, Oleaceae) Highlight the Roles of Migration and Vicariance in the Diversification of Temperate Trees |first1=Damien Daniel |last1=Hinsinger |first2=Jolly |last2=Basak |first3=Myriam |last3=Gaudeul |first4=Corinne |last4=Cruaud |first5=Paola |last5=Bertolino |first6=Nathalie |last6=Frascaria-Lacoste |first7=Jean |last7=Bousquet |date=21 November 2013 |journal=PLOS One |volume=8 |issue=11 |article-number=e80431 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0080431 |pmid=24278282 |pmc=3837005 |bibcode=2013PLoSO...880431H |doi-access=free}}</ref>

{{clade |label1='''''Fraxinus''''' |1={{clade |1=section Dipetalae |2={{clade |1=section Melioides |2={{clade |1=section Pauciflorae |2={{clade |1=section Ornus |2={{clade |1=section Fraxinus |2=section Sciadanthus }} }} }} }} }} }}

; Section ''Dipetalae'' * ''Fraxinus anomala'' Torr. ex S.Watson – singleleaf ash * ''Fraxinus dipetala'' Hook. & Arn. – California ash or two-petal ash * ''Fraxinus parryi'' Moran – Chaparral ash * ''Fraxinus quadrangulata'' Michx. – blue ash * ''Fraxinus trifoliolata''

; Section ''Fraxinus'' * ''Fraxinus angustifolia'' Vahl – narrow-leaved ash ** ''Fraxinus angustifolia'' subsp. ''oxycarpa'' – Caucasian ash ** ''Fraxinus angustifolia'' subsp. ''syriaca'' * ''Fraxinus excelsior'' L. – European ash * ''Fraxinus mandschurica'' Rupr. – Manchurian ash * ''Fraxinus nigra'' Marshall – black ash * ''Fraxinus pallisiae'' Wilmott – Pallis' ash * ''Fraxinus sogdiana'' {{small |Bunge}} – Tianshan ash

; Section ''Melioides sensu lato'' * ''Fraxinus chiisanensis'' {{small |Nakai}} – Jirisan ash * ''Fraxinus cuspidata'' Torr. – fragrant ash * ''Fraxinus platypoda'' {{small |Oliv.}} – Chinese red ash * ''Fraxinus spaethiana'' Lingelsh. – Späth's ash

; Section ''Melioides sensu stricto'' * ''Fraxinus albicans'' Buckley – Texas ash * ''Fraxinus americana'' L. – white ash or American ash * ''Fraxinus berlandieriana'' DC. – Mexican ash * ''Fraxinus caroliniana'' Mill. – Carolina ash * ''Fraxinus latifolia'' Benth. – Oregon ash * ''Fraxinus papillosa'' Lingelsh. – Chihuahua ash * ''Fraxinus pennsylvanica'' Marshall – green ash * ''Fraxinus profunda'' (Bush) Bush – pumpkin ash * ''Fraxinus uhdei'' (Wenz.) Lingelsh. – Shamel ash or Tropical ash * ''Fraxinus velutina'' Torr. – velvet ash or Arizona ash

; Section ''Ornus'' * ''Fraxinus apertisquamifera'' * ''Fraxinus baroniana'' * ''Fraxinus bungeana'' DC. – Bunge's ash * ''Fraxinus chinensis'' Roxb. – Chinese ash or Korean ash * ''Fraxinus floribunda'' Wall. – Himalayan manna ash * ''Fraxinus griffithii'' C.B.Clarke – Griffith's ash * ''Fraxinus insularis'' Hemsl. – Chinese flowering ash * ''Fraxinus japonica'' – Japanese ash * ''Fraxinus lanuginosa'' – Japanese ash * ''Fraxinus longicuspis'' * ''Fraxinus malacophylla'' * ''Fraxinus micrantha'' Lingelsh. * ''Fraxinus ornus'' L. – manna ash or flowering ash * ''Fraxinus paxiana'' Lingelsh. * ''Fraxinus sieboldiana'' Blume – Japanese flowering ash

; Section ''Pauciflorae'' * ''Fraxinus dubia'' * ''Fraxinus gooddingii'' – Goodding's ash * ''Fraxinus greggii'' A.Gray – Gregg's ash * ''Fraxinus purpusii'' * ''Fraxinus rufescens''

; Section ''Sciadanthus'' * ''Fraxinus dimorpha'' * ''Fraxinus hubeiensis'' Ch'u & Shang & Su – 湖北梣, ''Hubei qin'' * ''Fraxinus xanthoxyloides'' (G.Don) Wall. ex DC. – Afghan ash<ref name="GRINspecies">{{cite web |url=http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?4752 |title=Species Records of ''Fraxinus'' |work=Germplasm Resources Information Network |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |access-date=22 February 2010}}</ref><ref name="ITIS">{{cite web |url=https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=32928 |title=''Fraxinus'' L. |work=ITIS Standard Reports |publisher=Integrated Taxonomic Information System |access-date=22 February 2010}}</ref>

== Ecology and distribution == The genus ''Fraxinus'' is widespread throughout much of Europe, Asia, and North America.<ref name="POWO"/> The genus is primarily temperate or subtropical; 22 of the species occur in China,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=113002 |work=Flora of China |volume=15 |page=273 |via=衿属 qin shu |title=''Fraxinus'' Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 1057. 1753}}</ref> while for example Italy has 4 species.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://luirig.altervista.org/flora/taxa/floraspecie.php?genere=Fraxinus |title=''Fraxinus'' |work=Altervista Flora Italiana |access-date=16 April 2016}}</ref> Both native and introduced ''Fraxinus'' species occur in almost every contiguous state of the United States and all the southern provinces of Canada.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile?symbol=FRAXI |title=Genus ''Fraxinus'' |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |access-date=21 August 2016}}</ref>

Ash species provide habitat and food for the larvae of many insects including long-horn beetles, plant bugs, lace bugs, aphids, and caterpillars, as well as birds and mammals.<ref>{{cite web |title=Black Ash |url=https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/plants/black_ash.html |website=Illinois Wildflowers |publisher=Dr. John Hilty |access-date=27 August 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=White Ash |url=https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/plants/white_ash.html |website=Illinois Wildflowers |publisher=Dr. John Hilty |access-date=27 August 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Green Ash |url=https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/plants/green_ash.htm |website=Illinois Wildflowers |publisher=Dr. John Hilty |access-date=27 August 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Red Ash |url=https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/plants/red_ash.htm |website=Illinois Wildflowers |publisher=Dr. John Hilty |access-date=27 August 2018}}</ref>

The emerald ash borer (''Agrilus planipennis''), is a wood-boring beetle accidentally introduced to North America from eastern Asia via solid wood packing material in the late 1980s to early 1990s. It has killed tens of millions of trees in 22 states in the United States<ref>{{cite web |last=Moy |first=Derek |url=http://www.emeraldashborer.info/about-eab.php |website=Emerald Ash Borer Information Network |title=About Emerald Ash Borer |access-date=24 July 2017 |archive-date=29 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129072804/http://www.emeraldashborer.info/about-eab.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> and neighbouring Ontario and Quebec in Canada. It threatens some seven billion ash trees in North America. Three native Asian wasp species, natural predators of the beetle, have been evaluated as possible biological controls. The public was cautioned to avoid transporting unfinished wood products, such as firewood, to slow the spread of the pest.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Problem |url=http://www.dontmovefirewood.org/the-problem.html |work=Don't Move Firewood |access-date=14 October 2011}}</ref> Damage occurs when emerald ash borer larvae feed on the inner bark, phloem of ash trees, preventing nutrient and water transportation.<ref>{{cite report |title=Emerald Ash Borer and Your Woodland |series=Extension Bulletin E-2943 |url=http://www.emeraldashborer.info/documents/E-2943.pdf |publisher=Michigan State University Extension |date=September 2007 }}{{Dead link|date=February 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref><ref>{{cite report |url=https://emeraldashborerinsouthdakota.sd.gov/PDF/How-To-Identify-an-Ash-Tree-Infested-by-EAB_06-2001-2018.pdf |title=How to Identify an Ash Tree Infested by Emerald Ash Borer |publisher=South Dakota State University Extension |last=Ball |first=John |date=April 2018}}</ref>

The European ash, ''Fraxinus excelsior'', has been affected by the fungus ''Hymenoscyphus fraxineus'', causing chalara ash dieback<ref>{{cite journal |last=Kowalski |first=T. |date=2006 |title=Chalara fraxinea sp. nov. associated with dieback of ash (Fraxinus excelsior) in Poland |journal=Forest Pathology |volume=36 |issue=4 |pages=264–270|doi=10.1111/j.1439-0329.2006.00453.x }}</ref> in a large number of trees since the mid-1990s, particularly in eastern and northern Europe.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Halmschlager |first1=E. |last2=Kirisits |first2=T. |year=2008 |url=http://www.bspp.org.uk/publications/new-disease-reports/july2008/2008-25.asp |title=First report of the ash dieback pathogen Chalara fraxinea on Fraxinus excelsior in Austria |journal=New Disease Reports |volume=17 |page=20 |access-date=10 February 2010 |archive-date=29 September 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090929053106/http://www.bspp.org.uk/publications/new-disease-reports/july2008/2008-25.asp }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ogris |first1=N. |last2=Hauptman |first2=T. |last3=Jurc |first3=D. |year=2009 |url=http://www.bspp.org.uk/publications/new-disease-reports/ndr.php?id=019015 |title=Chalara fraxinea causing common ash dieback newly reported in Slovenia |journal=New Disease Reports |volume=19 |page=15 |access-date=10 February 2010 |archive-date=9 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091109042759/http://www.bspp.org.uk/publications/new-disease-reports/ndr.php?id=019015 }}</ref> The disease has infected about 90% of Denmark's ash trees.<ref name=bbc-20121025>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20079657 |title='Ash dieback' fungus Chalara fraxinea in UK countryside |work=BBC |date=25 October 2012}}</ref> In 2012 in the UK, ash dieback was found in mature woodland.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20079657 BBC News 'Ash dieback' fungus, ''Chalara fraxinea'' found in UK countryside. Retrieved 25 October 2012].</ref> The combination of emerald ash borer and ash dieback has threatened ash populations in Europe,<ref>{{cite news |last=Marshall |first=Claire |date=23 March 2016 |title=Ash tree set for extinction in Europe |work=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-35876621}}</ref> but trees in mixed landscapes appear to have some resistance to the disease.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kinver |first=Mark |date=8 May 2020 |title=Some landscapes show resistance to ash dieback |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-52582304}}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=160 heights=160> File:Agrilus planipennis 001.jpg|Emerald ash borer adult File:Eablarva.jpg|Emerald ash borer larva File:Bore remnants.jpg|Emerald ash borer damage on a fallen trunk File:Chalara ash dieback - symptoms - 39.jpg|Chalara ash dieback File:Canker on Ash.JPG|Canker on an ash tree </gallery>

== Uses ==

Ash is a hardwood and is dense, around 670 kg/m3 for ''Fraxinus americana'', the white ash,<ref name="NicheTimbersWhite">{{cite web |url=https://www.nichetimbers.co.uk/north-american-hardwood/ash/ |title=White Ash |publisher=Niche Timbers |access-date=22 February 2010}}</ref> and 710 kg/m3 for ''Fraxinus excelsior'', the European ash.<ref name="NicheTimbersEuropean">{{cite web |url=https://www.nichetimbers.co.uk/native-hardwood/ash/ |title=Ash |publisher=Niche Timbers |access-date=22 February 2010}}</ref> The wood of the European ash is strong and elastic, making it suitable for uses such as the handles of tools.<ref name="Scotland"/> It is a good firewood.<ref name="Scotland">{{cite web |title=Ash |url=https://forestryandland.gov.scot/learn/trees/ash |publisher=Forestry and Land Scotland |access-date=2 October 2025}}</ref>

The Fender musical instrument company has used ash as a tonewood for its electric guitars since 1950.<ref name="fender.com">{{cite web |url=https://www.fender.com/articles/tech-talk/ash-vs-alder-whats-the-diff |title=Ash vs. Alder: What's the Difference? }}</ref> Species used for guitar building include swamp ash.<ref>[https://www.commercialforestproducts.com/good-swamp-ash/ SWAMP ASH Lumber Guide: 8/4 Lightweight Guitar Wood 2020] 15 December 2018 ''www.commercialforestproducts.com'', accessed 27 September 2020</ref> Ash is in addition used for making drum shells. It has been described as resonant, providing a balanced tone for both high and low notes.<ref>{{cite web |title=13 Different Drum Shell Wood Types |url=https://thedrumninja.com/different-drum-shell-wood-types/ |publisher=The Drum Ninja LLC |access-date=2 October 2025}}</ref> Ash wood can be used for furniture, agricultural tools, and household objects such as bowls, candlesticks, and spoons.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bagshaw |first1=Emily |title=Ash Rise celebrates the material intelligence and craft potential of Scotland's native ash tree. |url=https://www.materialsource.co.uk/ash-rise-celebrates-the-material-intelligence-and-craft-potential-of-scotlands-native-ash-tree/ |website=Material Source |access-date=2 October 2025 |date=4 March 2025}}</ref> The Morgan Motor Company of Great Britain still manufactures sports cars with frames made from ash.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.caranddriver.com/a-tour-of-morgan-motor-companys-factory/|title=Let the Wood (and Aluminum) Times Roll: A Tour of Morgan Motor Company's Factory|date=14 May 2012|access-date=4 January 2018|archive-date=28 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828190238/http://blog.caranddriver.com/a-tour-of-morgan-motor-companys-factory/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The green ash (''F. pennsylvanica'') is widely planted as a street tree in the United States.<ref>{{cite web |title=Green ash: Fraxinus pennsylvanica |url=https://mortonarb.org/plant-and-protect/trees-and-plants/green-ash/ |publisher=Morton Arboretum |access-date=2 October 2025}}</ref> The inner bark of the blue ash (''F. quadrangulata'') has been used as a source for blue dye.<ref>Oklahoma Biological Survey: [http://www.biosurvey.ou.edu/shrub/frax-qua.htm ''Fraxinus quadrangulata''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081020062158/http://www.biosurvey.ou.edu/shrub/frax-qua.htm |date=2008-10-20 }}</ref> In Sicily, Italy, a sugary manna is obtained from the resinous sap of the manna ash, extracted by making cuts in the bark.<ref name="BBC manna 2025">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20250328-the-return-of-sicilys-ancient-white-gold |title=Traverso V. The return of Sicily's ancient 'white gold' |work=BBC News |date=30 March 2025}}</ref> The young seedpods of the European ash, known as "keys", are edible; in Britain, they are traditionally pickled with vinegar, sugar and spices.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2021/06/foraging-in-june/ |title=Foraging in June |publisher=Woodland Trust |date=24 June 2021}}</ref> A range of pharmacologically active compounds exist in ''Fraxinus'' species, with for example anti-inflammatory, antihypertensive, and antihyperglycaemic properties which might find practical applications.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sarfraz |first1=Iqra |last2=Rasul |first2=Azhar |last3=Jabeen |first3=Farhat |last4=Younis |first4=Tahira |last5=Zahoor |first5=Muhammad Kashif |last6=Arshad |first6=Muhammad |last7=Ali |first7=Muhammad |title=Fraxinus: A Plant with Versatile Pharmacological and Biological Activities |journal=Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine |volume=2017 |issue=1 |date=2017 |pmid=29279716 |pmc=5723943 |doi=10.1155/2017/4269868 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=160 heights=160> File:Fender Telecaster lite ash headstock (2005-11-27 07.55.40 by Pierre Journel).jpg|Ash headstock of a Fender Telecaster electric guitar File:Shovel 24cm (cropped).jpg|Ash is widely used for tool handles.<ref name="Scotland"/> File:Hurling Ball and Hurley.JPG|Hurley (playing stick used in hurling and camogie) File:Flamed Quartersawn Ash Guitar Top.jpg|{{Frac|5|16}}" thick flame figure quartersawn ash guitar top, unmilled File:Ash_Table_by_Ben_Barclay.jpg|Ash coffee table File:MorganWoodDoorFrame.jpg|Ash frame of a Morgan Motor Company car </gallery>

== Mythology and folklore == {{listen|filename=The Ash Grove.ogg|title="The Ash Grove"|description=Traditional melody|format=Ogg}}

In Greek mythology, the Meliae, their name meaning "ash trees", are nymphs associated with the ash, perhaps specifically of the manna ash (''Fraxinus ornus''), as dryads were nymphs associated with the oak. They appear in Hesiod's ''Theogony,'' which states that they were born when drops of Ouranos's blood fell on the earth (Gaia).<ref>Caldwell, Richard, ''Hesiod's Theogony'', Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Company (June 1, 1987). {{ISBN|978-0-941051-00-2}}. p. 38 n. 178–187: "The nymphs called ''Meliai'' are properly "ash-tree" nymphs; the Greek word for ash-trees is ''meliai'' also".</ref> In Norse mythology, a vast, evergreen ash tree Yggdrasil ("the steed (gallows) of Odin"), watered by three magical springs, serves as axis mundi, sustaining the nine worlds of the cosmos in its roots and branches. ''Askr'', the first man in Norse myth, literally means 'ash'.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Simek|first=Rudolf|author-link=Rudolf Simek|translator=Angela Hall |title=Dictionary of Northern Mythology |year=2007 |publisher=D.S. Brewer|isbn=978-0-85991-513-7}}</ref> In Slavic folklore, an ash stake could be used to kill a vampire.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Del Lao|first=Nero|title=Perpetuum Mobile: Il Segreto per non Morire |year=2013 |publisher=Xlibris Corporation|isbn=978-1-49313-8388}}</ref> In the Old English Latin alphabet, Æ was the letter {{Lang|ang|æsc}}, "ash tree".<ref>{{cite book |chapter=æsc |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H99ZAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA11 |page=11 |title=A Handy Anglo-Saxon Dictionary: Based on Groschopp's Grein |editor1-last=Harrison |editor1-first=James A. |editor2-last=Baskervill |editor2-first=W. M. |year=1885 |publisher=A. S. Barnes}}</ref> This transliterated the Anglo-Saxon futhorc rune ᚫ.<ref name=Barnes-2012>{{cite book |first=Michael |last=Barnes |year=2012 |title=Runes: A handbook |place=Woodbridge |publisher=Boydell |pages=38–41 }}</ref>

The Welsh folk song "Llwyn Onn", "The Ash Grove", sung in the English version by John Oxenford: "The ash grove, how graceful, how plainly 'tis speaking; The lark through its branches is gazing on me".<ref>{{cite web |title=The Ash Grove |url=https://secondhandsongs.com/work/130560/all |website=Second Hand Songs |access-date=3 October 2025}}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == {{Commons category|Fraxinus|''Fraxinus''}} {{Wikispecies}} * [https://www.uwgb.edu/biodiversity/herbarium/trees/Fraxinus_comparison01.htm Cofrin Center for Biodiversity Herbarium, University of Wisconsin, Trees of Wisconsin, ''Fraxinus'' comparison chart]; {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017234542/https://www.uwgb.edu/biodiversity/herbarium/trees/Fraxinus_comparison01.htm |date=17 October 2014 }} * {{cite journal |last1=Campbell |first1=Julian J. N. |title=Green/red and white ashes (''Fraxinus'' sect. ''Melioides'') of east-central North America: Taxonomic concepts and polyploidy |journal=Phytoneuron |date=2017 |volume=2017-28 |pages=1–36 |url=https://www.phytoneuron.net/2017Phytoneuron/28PhytoN-Fraxinus.pdf |access-date=8 January 2022 |ref=none}}

Category:Fraxinus Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Category:Medicinal plants Category:Oleaceae genera Category:Trees