Our Local Ecology The Land - Tree IdentificationAsh Trees View videos of Mountain Ash trees & berries below: American Mountain Ash - Sorbus americana (Marsh.)Other Common Names: Rowan Tree, Rowan Berry, Mountain Ash, and Service Tree. Like the Showy Mountain Ash, the American Mountain Ash is found throughout P.E.I. It is a small tree, often bushy or shrub-like, rarely exceeding 30 feet in height and 8 inches in diameter. The trunk is usually short with a flit-topped crown made up of stout ascending branches. It can be easily separated from the Showy Mountain Ash by its small flowers and fruit, and its narrow, lance-shaped, fine-toothed leaflets. It prefers rich open sites but is not confined to these. It never grows in pure stands but is found growing alone or in small clumps along the borders of streams, margins of swamps and in damp woods. Like its close relative, the Showy Mountain Ash, the wood has no commercial importance. It is used in ornamental planting but is not nearly as handsome or as hardy as the Showy Mountain Ash. DESCRIPTION LEAVES: Alternate, compound, 6 to 10 inches long, composed of 11 to 17 leaflets borne in pairs on a moderately stout stem. Leaflets lance-shaped, rounded to wedge-shaped at the base, sharp-pointed at the tip fine-toothed almost to the base, 2 to 3 1/2 inches long; bright green above, paler and slightly hairy below. FLOWERS: May-June, after the leaves, bisexual, white about 1/4 of an inch in diameter; borne in broad, flat-topped clusters. FRUIT: August, rounded, berry-like, about 1/4 of an inch in diameter, bright red, glossy; often remaining on the tree over winter. TWIGS: Stout, smooth, sometimes slightly hairy, reddish-brown, spotted with numerous lenticels. Terminal bud large conical, about 1/2 inch long, with gummy, dark purplish-red, smooth or slightly hairy scales; lateral buds smaller. BARK: Thin, smooth, reddish-brown on young stems; light grey, smooth or with a few loose scales on old trunks. WOOD: Light, soft, weak, close-grained, diffuse-porous; pale brown with lighter coloured sapwood.
Black Ash - Fraxinus nigraOther Common Names: Swamp Ash, Water Ash, Brown Ash and Hoop Ash. Black Ash is confined to the wet areas of P.E.I. Here it seldom reaches a height of over 50 feet with a diameter of one foot. The trunk is slender and usually extends to the top of the tree. The crown, of slender, mostly upright branches, is narrow and fairly open. It will not grow in the shade of other trees and is mainly confined to wet sites along rivers and brooks, and the margin of swamps. It grows singly in open stands of eastern white cedar and balsam fir or with red maple and other swamp hardwoods. It is distinguished from the white ash by its stemless leaflets, dark brown to almost black winter buds and its light grey bark on the twigs. The wood is not as strong or as hard as that of white ash and is therefore used mainly for decorative purposes, such as interior finish, fixtures and cabinet-work. The wood is valued by the First Nations Peoples who separate it into long strips and weave. these into baskets. DESCRIPTION LEAVES: Opposite, compound, 10 to 16 inches long, composed of 7 to 11 stemless leaflets borne in pairs on a stout stem. Leaflets lance-shaped, fine-toothed, 3 to 5 inches long; dark green above, paler, smooth except for tufts of hair along the midvein below. FLOWERS: May-June, before the leaves; unisexual and bisexual, male and bisexual flowers on the same or on different trees. FRUIT: Early autumn; an oblong samara, 1 to 1 1/2 inches long, the thin wing extending to the base of the seed cavity; shed during the autumn and early winter. TWIGS: Stout, smooth, light grey. Terminal bud dark brown to almost black; lateral buds smaller. BARK: On young stems, grey, slightly roughened; on older trunks greyish, scaly, shallow furrowed into soft ridges. WOOD: Moderately heavy and hard, not strong, ring porous; dark brown with paler or almost white sapwood.
Showy Mountain Ash - Sorbus decora (Sarg.) Schneid.Other Common Names: Rowan Tree, Rowan Berry, Mountain Ash, Service Tree. Showy Mountain Ash is common throughout the province. It is a small, often bushy tree, seldom over 30 feet high with a diameter of over 6 inches, but may, under suitable conditions, grow much larger. It is commonly found on moist sites along the banks of streams and on the margins of swamps. It is quite common in old pastures and along fences. It grows singlyor in small clumps with red maple, yellow and white birch, balsam fir, white and black spruce. Around this province it is frequently a low shrub. The wood is of no commercial importance. However, the tree is sometimes used for ornamental planting. DESCRIPTION LEAVES: Alternate, compound, 5 to 10 inches long, composed of 11 to I5 leaflets borne in pairs on a stout grooved stem. Leaflets oblong in outline, rounded at the base, rounded or blunt-pointed at the tip, coarse-toothed to the middle or below, 1 1/2 to 3 inches long; blue-green above, paler and sometimes hairy below. FLOWERS: June, after leaves, bisexual, white, about 1/2 inch in diameter; borne on slightly hairy stems in broad, flat-topped clusters. FRUIT: August; rounded, berry-like, between 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter, scarlet or vermilion; often remaining on the tree over winter. TWIGS: Stout, smooth, greyish-brown, with a few scattered lenticels. Terminal bud large, conical, about 1/2 inch long, the outer scales smooth, gummy, dark purplish-red, the inner scales somewhat hairy on the margins, lateral buds smaller. BARK: Thin, greyish-brown smooth on young stems; dark grey, almost smooth or covered with loose papery scales on old trunks. WOOD: Light, soft, weak, close-grained, diffuse-porous, pale brown with lighter colored sapwood.
White Ash - Fraxinus americana (L.)Other Common Names: Canadian White Ash and American Ash A few scattered white ash still exist throughout P.E.I. They are medium-sized trees around 5O feet in height and rarely exceeding one foot in diameter in this province. The trunk is tall and straight even when grown in the open. The crown is broadly rounded to pyramidal in outline, made up of moderately stout ascending branches. It grows best on a deep, well-drained soil along streams and on lower slopes, in protected situations. It is found scattered in small groups among other hardwoods. The wood is valued chiefly for its toughness and resilience, hence, it is used for the framework of light vehicles, in aircraft construction, skis, long handled tools and bentwood construction. The tree is often planted for ornamental purposes. DESCRIPTION LEAVES: Opposite, compound, 8 to 12 inches long, composed of 5 to 9 long stalked leaflets borne in pairs on a stout, smooth stem. Leaflets oval to lance-shaped, sharp-pointed, entire or sparsely toothed, 3 to 5 inches long; dark green, smooth above, paler and smooth or slightly hairy below.FLOWERS: May-June, before or with the leaves; unisexual; male and female on different trees; borne in stout clusters. FRUIT: Late summer; an elongated samara, 1 to 2 1/2 inches long, thin wing rarely extending below the top of the seed cavity; often persisting on the tree until well in the winter. TWIGS: Stout, smooth, shiny, dark green to purplish green. Terminal bud dark brown, slightly downy; lateral buds smaller, the first pair set of the same level as the terminal bud. BARK: Grey or brownish; on old trunks furrowed into flattened interlacing ridges. WOOD: Heavy, hard, strong, close-grained, ring-porous; light-brown with paler sapwood.
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