Known as the tree of heaven, the Ailanthus is an exotic, deciduous tree. Stout twigs have rounded buds bearing two to four scales with an absent terminal bud. The ill-scented leaves are alternate, odd-pinnate, and 12—24 inches (30—60 cm) long. There are 11—25 leaflets which often bear a few teeth near the base with glands beneath. Flowers are small and dioecious. The male flowers are reported to give off an unpleasant odor that may be masked by the odor of the foliage. Fruit is a flattened samara about 11/2 inches (4 cm) long.
Ailanthus altissima (glandulosa)–Tree of Heaven, Ailanthus
Ailanthus (Tree of Heaven)–Ailanthus altissima (glandulosa)
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| Ailanthus (Tree of Heaven) |
The Ailanthus was brought to this country from China about 185 years ago and was first planted near Philadelphia, Penn. The Ailanthus has been planted in all parts of Ohio. It has escaped cultivation and may form dense thickets in disturbed sites. It is also called tree of heaven and is common in waste places, roadways, and abandoned fields. All portions of the tree are ill-scented and some suggest that it is called the tree of heaven because it smells all the way to heaven.
The leaves are 12—24 inches (301/2—61 cm) long, alternate, odd-pinnately compound, and have 11—25 leaflets per leaf. Leaflets are 3—5 inches (71/2—13 cm) long, lanceolate, and long-pointed at the apex. Leaflets are acute-tipped with a few glandular teeth at the base. Glands are usually present near the base of leaflets.
Twigs are stout with brown pith and imbricate buds. The terminal bud is absent. The buds are 1/8—1/6 inches (3—4 mm) long, round, and reddish-brown with two visible scales located in a notch above the large leaf scar. The bark on young trees is smooth, thin, and light gray. Bark on older trunks becomes dark gray to black. The twigs are very stout, yellowish-green to brown, and covered with a velvety down. Twigs are marked with ocher-colored breathing pores (lenticels) and large, heart-shaped leaf scars with eight to 14 groups of bundle scars.
The individual flowers are small, dioecious, greenish, and borne in June or July. Flowers are arranged in loose panicles. Pollen-bearing and seed-producing flowers occur on different trees. The male flowers give off an unpleasant odor that may be masked by the odor of the foliage. The fruit is a thin, winged samara about 11/2 inches (38 mm) long and produced in large clusters. Seed heads are green at first, then reddish-brown, and then tan. Fruit is held until the winter. Seeds mature in September or October, sometimes with a red, fruited stage between the green and the brown stages.
The wood is light, soft, weak, and white to pale yellow. It is well-adapted to the manufacture of paper pulp. Male trees produce no seed or seedlings and might be preferred for landscape plantings. A male cultivar was recently introduced as ‘Metro.'