The mighty ash

The ash Fraxinus excelsior is the third commonest tree species in Britain.

The wood of the ash is both strong and flexible. In the past it was used by the Anglo-Saxons for their spears and shield-handles. More recently it has been used to make tool handles, furniture, sports equipment, walking sticks, tent pegs, oars, gates, wheel rims, and even the wings of the De Havilland Mosquito which flew in World War II.

In Britain, and elsewhere, the ash was regarded as a healing tree and in the past a child with rickets or a broken limb would be passed naked through the split trunk of an ash in the hope of a cure.

The species is currently affected by ash dieback, a devastating fungal disease Chalara fraxinea. Let us hope that its powers include self-healing.