According to legend, the ancient Greek gods considered ash wood to be quite suitable material for creating man. And in the poem "Works and Days" written by Hesiod, it is narrated that Zeus created people from the shaft of his spear. It is known that the armourers of Ancient Greece carved them from ash wood.
In ancient Greece, this tree was considered a symbol of righteous retribution. Perhaps for this reason, the goddess of retribution - the punishing Nemesis - was often depicted in paintings with a branch of ash in his hand. Some peoples believed that poisonous snakes are very afraid of ash, in particular its juice. It was believed that if you wet your shirt with ash juice, dry it and put it on, you can protect yourself from poisonous bites.
In the Caucasus, this is one of the revered trees. From generation to generation, the highlanders guarded not only individual trees, but their entire plantings. Here they performed sacrificial rites. For this, bloody retribution was not required; ash was satisfied with dairy products brought to it.
In this article, we will tell you where the ash grows, how it looks. You may be interested to know how it is used.
Ash (tree): types
Today, there are more than fifty varieties of these trees. The following are most common in the world:
- American Ash - grows in eastern North America. Prefers deciduous forests and nutrient-rich, well-drained moist soils. It is found on the slopes of mountains (up to 1050 m above sea level), on the hills.
- Ash-tree flower (white) - is widespread on the European territory of Russia, in Western Europe, in the Middle East. It is a photophilous xero-mesophyte of deciduous forests.
- Ash lanceolate (green) is another plant representing the genus Ash. In vivo occurs in eastern North America. In the XVIII century, it was introduced into the culture and subsequently spread quite widely. In deciduous forests, forms dense plantations, grows along the banks of ponds, on humid hills and hills.
- Common ash - often found in the European part of our country, in the forests of the Caucasus and Crimea, in Western Europe, Asia Minor and the Mediterranean. It grows in deciduous forests on carbonate fertile soils.
- Fluffy ash (Pennsylvania) - common in North America. It populates the riverbanks, feels comfortable on flooded floodplains.
- Manchurian ash - a powerful tree with a height of more than thirty meters and a trunk diameter of more than a meter. Distributed in the Far East, in East Asia. Widely represented in many reserves.
- Black ash - found in the eastern regions of North America. The tree grows up to twenty five meters. It grows in mixed stands along the banks of streams and lakes. This species tolerates a slight stagnation of water. Rarely forms a pure plantation.
- Nasolate ash - a small tree, not more than twelve meters high. The trunk in diameter is about thirty centimeters. Distributed in the Far East, in East Asia. It is grown in some Far Eastern reserves.
American ash (tree): description
Slender and tall tree (up to forty meters). Crohn is wide, ovoid in shape. The branches are bare, only young branches have a slight pubescence of greenish-brown with a reddish tint. Later they acquire a light orange color. Sometimes it can be gray or brown.
Leaves and flowers
Of particular note is a leaf of wood. Ash has rather large plates, the length of which is about thirty centimeters. Leaflets with serrated or solid edges. Their shape is oblong-oval or oblong-elliptical. A complex sheet consisting of five to nine plates. Their length is not more than fifteen centimeters, width - about five centimeters.
They are located on small petioles (0.4-0.8 cm). The upper side of the plate is painted dark green with veins pressed in, the lower part is much lighter. It has a cellular or smooth structure. Pistillate inflorescences can reach ten centimeters in length. Dioecious flowers. The cup is clearly visible.
Fruit
American ash, whose photo we posted in this article, has lion fruits. Their length can vary from 2.4 to 3.4 cm. Nuts are slightly less than half the lionfish in length. They have the correct cylindrical shape, the wings are not bordered.
American ash blossoms from mid-April to early May (before the appearance of leaves). At that moment, when pollen of the stigma of female flowers is ready to receive, male neighboring flowers are not yet fully ripen. Therefore, it is fertilized by pollen from other trees. Fruits from August to October.
Ash fruits are rich in fats (up to 30%), therefore, since ancient times, people have eaten them. In England in the XVIII century they were canned in an immature form and used as a spicy seasoning for meat and vegetable dishes. In spring, the tree gives off sweet juice, which is used as a substitute for sucrose.
On fertile soils, American ash, the photo of which you see in the article, is growing rapidly. The plant is frost-resistant, but it is sometimes harmed by late spring frosts. Fruits a tree from twenty-five to forty years. It spreads self-seeding, often runs wild.
The soil
American ash is not too picky about the soil, but prefers slightly acid fertile soils. It also develops well in wetlands. It tolerates drought poorly. Most often adjacent to alder, oak, maple. Very rarely forms frequent plantings. It adapts well to the conditions of the city. In the USA it is used as an ornamental plant.
Breeding
Under natural conditions, American ash is propagated by layering, perennial shoots and seeds. In artificial plantations, seeds that are previously stratified are often used.
Use in medicine
For a long time, respiratory organs, radiculitis have been treated with bark and ash leaves. Often used as a laxative and diuretic and as a complete substitute for quinine. Seren Samonik (Roman physician) described in his work the use of ash seeds for the treatment of cough, dropsy, and liver diseases. Ancient Germans and Greeks claimed that ash juice can heal from a snakebite.
Today, American ash is used in homeopathy and traditional medicine. For the manufacture of medicines, bark, leaves and fruits of ash are used. The bark is harvested in the spring, and the leaves in early summer. The leaves contain:
- organic acids;
- carbohydrates;
- essential oils;
- carotene;
- Salonins
- Vitamin C
- tannins.
No less useful substances are also found in the cortex:
- phenols;
- carbohydrates;
- coumarins;
- alkaloids;
- flavonoids.
Ash-based preparations have tonic and hemostatic, astringent and antipyretic, diuretic and laxative, antispasmodic and antimicrobial, antitussive and antirheumatic properties.
Tincture of the fruit is used externally for varicose veins. Juice is used to produce mannitol, which in dried form is used in the diet of patients with diabetes. However, we must not forget that ash pollen is the strongest allergen that can provoke the development of contact dermatitis.
Interesting Facts
- This tree has several folk names - holly, ashberry, ash. Often adjacent to oak and maple. Watching the ash and oak in the spring, people said that if the first leaves appear first on the oak, then the summer will be arid.
- The ancient Greeks used the juice of ash leaves to heal wounds after being bitten by poisonous snakes.
- The juice obtained from the branches was buried in the eyes to improve vision and give them shine.
- In Russia, ash bark was used to combat malaria and fever. Many nations worshiped ash. He was called the "tree of knowledge", considered a symbol of life and wisdom.
- In the folklore of Ukraine, he personified the suffering. Among the ancient Scandinavians, the forces of nature were represented by a huge ash, which supported the vault of heaven.
- In magic, he became the personification of good and evil. Psychics believe that a tree has powerful energy.
- In the XIX century, the word "ash" was used in the feminine.