Common Name: velvet ash
Duration: Perennial
Nativity: Native
Lifeform: Tree
Wetland Status: FAC
General: Medium sized trees, 8-9 m tall, occasionally reaching 12-15 m tall, with a trunk 30-45 cm in diameter, and a rounded crown composed of many thin, spreading branches; bark gray to grayish-red, furrowed and zig-zagged; young twigs light gray and covered with small, fine hairs, becoming shiny gray and hairless with age.
Leaves: Mostly opposite along the branchlets; leaves pinnately compound with 3 or 5 leaflets per leaf; leaflets 3-7 cm long, elliptical or oval with pointed tips and finely round-toothed edges; upper surface pale green and shiny, and lower surface green and slightly hairy; young leaves covered with velvety hairs.
Flowers: Tiny and inconspicuous, with male and female flowers on separate trees (dioecious); flowers appear before the leaves in springtime, and are arranged in elongate, pubescent, drooping panicles; male flowers are yellow and female flowers are green; calyx small, bell-shaped, with 4 lobes; petals lacking.
Fruits: Samara flat, paddle-shaped, 2 cm in length and less than 1 cm wide, often with a small notch at the tip.
Ecology: Found in moist soils, along streams and riparian areas, from 3,000-7,000 ft (914-2134 m); flowers March-May.
Distribution: s and c CA, s NV, s UT, AZ, NM, s TX; south to c MEX; Europe.
Notes: Characterized by being a small to large tree with opposite leaves, each leaf with 3-5 oval-shaped leaflets; and winged fruits. This is the common ash tree of middle elevation rivers in the desert Southwest. Find it in the riparian gallery forest with Arizona walnut trees, Fremont cottonwoods, and Gooding's willow.
Ethnobotany: Hualapai used the wood to make bows, and as a sharp tool for gathering mescal agave.
Etymology: Fraxinus is the classical Latin name for ash trees; velutina means velvety, alluding to the texture of the young leaves and twigs.
Synonyms: Fraxinus pennsylvanica ssp velutina, F. velutina var. coriacea, F. velutina var. glabra, F. velutina var. toumeyi
Editor: SBuckley 2010, FSCoburn 2015, AHazelton 2017
