River Birch
Betula nigra Medium tree Zones 3–9 40–70 ft
Shares floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
A native we do not grow
Green Ash
Fraxinus pennsylvanica. Medium tree, 50 to 75 feet, zones 2 to 9; full sun, part shade or shade; dry, average or wet ground.
We do not grow green ash, and it is not in our shop. This page gathers what our tools say about it and the natives we grow for the same ground.
At a glance
| Other names | Red ash, Darlington ash, river ash |
|---|---|
| Form | Medium tree |
| Height, feet | 50 to 75 |
| Spread, feet | Up to 50 |
| Zones | 2 to 9 |
| Sun | Full sun, part shade or shade |
| Soil moisture | Dry, average or wet ground |
| Growth | Fast |
| Leaves | Deciduous |
| Traits | Fall color, wildlife value, salt tolerant |
| Flowers | March to May |
| Fruit | Samaras, September to March |
| First crop | 10 years (flowering usually starts at 20 to 25 feet tall) |
| Pollination | Separate male and female trees. Male and female flowers grow on separate trees, so a female tree bears seed only with a male nearby. |
| Lifespan | Can live 250 years. |
| Transplanting | The Morton Arboretum's page on green ash marks it as one that transplants well. |
| Black walnut | Not named on the Morton Arboretum's lists |
| Ground | Floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats |
| Native in | 39 states and the District of Columbia |
Green ash is native in 39 states and the District of Columbia: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming and the District of Columbia. The states are the USDA PLANTS Database's records, with the native range read from Silvics of North America and NatureServe Explorer. The USDA PLANTS Database also records it growing wild beyond that range in Colorado, New Mexico and Utah, where it is naturalized, not native.
What our tools say
How fast it grows and how big it gets, by site Whether it suits your zone, sun and soil How far from a house, wires and a septic field What grows with it in the wild and in a yard When to plant it where you live When it flowers and fruits, month by month How to sow its seed, with dates for your place How many to plant for a crop of seed Whether one you have can be moved, and what the move takes How old one is, from its trunk How a big one scores against the champion trees
For the same ground, we grow
These trees we grow share the most of green ash's natural communities in the wild, by the companion species tool's rules.
Peachleaf Willow
Salix amygdaloides Medium tree Zones 2–8 35–60 ft
Shares floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
Water Locust
Gleditsia aquatica Medium tree Zones 6–10 40–60 ft
Shares floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
Ogeechee Tupelo
Nyssa ogeche Medium tree Zones 6–9 25–45 ft
Shares floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
Swamp White Oak
Quercus bicolor Medium tree Zones 3–8 50–60 ft
Shares floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
American Elm
Ulmus americana Large tree Zones 2–9 60–80 ft
Shares floodplain forests, stream banks, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
Read from
Its figures come from Silvics of North America, NC State Extension, the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Morton Arboretum, the Wildflower Center, the Forest Service's Fire Effects Information System, the Woody Plant Seed Manual, Iowa State University Extension, the USDA PLANTS Database and the US Forest Service.