Editing Fraxinus excelsior (section)

==Uses==
[[File:Esche gemeine Holz.JPG|left|thumb|Veneer of common ash wood]]
[[File:Jakobframe.jpg|right|thumb|Replica of the body frame from the [[Volvo ÖV 4]] car, made primarily from ash wood]]

The resilience and rapid growth made it an important resource for smallholders and farmers. It was probably the most versatile wood in the countryside with wide-ranging uses. Until [[World War II]], the trees were often [[coppicing|coppiced]] on a 10-year cycle to provide a sustainable source of timber for fuel and poles for building and woodworking.<ref name="Mabey1996">Mabey, R. (1996). ''Flora Britannica''. [[Sinclair-Stevenson Ltd]] {{ISBN|1-85619-377-2}}.</ref> The colour of the wood ranges from creamy white to light brown, and the heart wood may be a darker olive-brown. Ash timber is hard, tough and very hard-wearing, with a coarse, open grain and a density of 710&nbsp;kg/m<sup>3</sup>.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ash |website=Niche Timbers |url=http://www.nichetimbers.co.uk/native-hardwood/ash/ |access-date=2009-08-19}}</ref> It lacks [[oak]]'s natural resistance to decay, and is not as suitable for posts buried in the ground. Because of its high flexibility, shock resistance, and resistance to splitting, ash wood is the traditional material for bows, tool handles, especially for [[hammer]]s and [[axe]]s, [[tennis racket]]s, and [[snooker]] [[cue stick]]s,<ref>Petrică Tudor M, Ingrid Agnes M, Szilard B. 2011. Study of Physical Characteristics, Mechanical and Technological Properties of Wood Species from the ''Fraxinus'' Genus Encountered in Romania Compared to Other Main Forestry Species. Natural Resources and Sustainable Development [http://protmed.uoradea.ro/facultate/publicatii/natural_resources/2011/papers/32.%20Motiu%20Tudor.pdf].</ref> and it was extensively used in the construction of early aircraft. Ash was commonly used green for making chair frames which would be seated with another timber or with woven [[Juncaceae|rush]] (e.g. those made by [[Philip Clissett]], see also ''The English Regional Chair''<ref>{{cite book|last=Cotton|first=Bernard D.|title=The English Regional Chair|year=1990 |publisher=Antiques Collectors Club|location=Woodbridge, Suffolk|isbn=1-85149-023-X}}</ref>). The parts were turned on a [[pole lathe]] or shaped with a [[drawknife]]. The practice essentially died out in the early 20th century, but has seen a revival in recent years.

Ash is an important constituent of [[wood pasture]], a European management system in which open woodland provided shelter and forage for grazing animals.<ref name="Stiven-2004">{{cite book |title=Wood Pasture |first1=Roland |last1=Stiven |first2=Kate |last2=Holl |date=2004 |publisher=Scottish Natural Heritage |location=Perth, UK |isbn=978-1853973864 |url=https://archive.org/details/woodpasture0000stiv |url-access=registration}}</ref> Ash was coppiced and [[pollarding|pollarded]], often in hedgerows, and evidence in the form of some huge boles with multiple trunks emerging at head height can still be seen in parts of Britain. The Glen Lyon ash is a notable example of a pollarded ash which at about 400–500 years of age achieved a girth of {{convert|6|m|||abbr=on}}.<ref name="Stiven-2004" /> In [[Northumberland]], [[crab]] and [[Lobster trap|lobster pots]] (traps) sometimes known as 'creeves' by local people are still made from ash sticks.{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}} Because of its [[Elasticity (physics)|elasticity]] European ash wood was commonly used for [[Assistive cane|walking sticks]]. Poles were cut from a [[coppicing|coppice]] and the ends heated in steam. The wood could then be bent in a curved [[Vise (tool)|vise]] to form the handle of the walking stick. The light colour and attractive grain of ash wood make it popular in modern furniture such as chairs, dining tables, doors, and other architectural features and [[wood flooring]].

Ash is the only wood used for the manufacture of [[hurley (stick)|hurleys]], referred to as hurls in parts of [[Leinster]] and known as a {{Lang|ga|camán}} in Irish, the timber sticks used in the game of [[hurling]] in [[Ireland]]. Hurleys are manufactured from the butt log (bottom 1.5-m of the stem) and from trees ideally of a diameter at breast height around {{convert|25-30|cm|||abbr=on|sigfig=2}}. Only fast-grown, straight, and knot-free ash can be used for this purpose. Due to the lack of available ash in Ireland, over 75% of the timber needed to produce the 350,000 hurleys required for the game annually must be imported, mostly from Eastern European countries.<ref>{{cite report |editor1=John Whiriskey |editor2=Paul McCarthy |date=May 2006 |series=Fact Sheet No. 35 |url=http://www.teagasc.ie/advisory/alternatives/200001/pdfs_060626/35_ASHFORHURLEY.pdf |title=Ash For Hurleys |publisher=Teagasc – The Agriculture and Food Development Authority |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071122040621/http://www.teagasc.ie/advisory/alternatives/200001/pdfs_060626/35_ASHFORHURLEY.pdf |archive-date=2007-11-22 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The importance of ash timber to the game of hurling is reflected in the fact that the game is referred to all over Ireland as "The Clash of the Ash".

Ash is valuable as firewood because it burns well even when 'green' (freshly cut).<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.scoutbase.org.uk/library/hqdocs/facts/pdfs/fs315001.pdf |title=The burning properties of wood |access-date=1 November 2010 |publisher=The Scout Association |year=1999 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121223202805/http://www.scoutbase.org.uk/library/hqdocs/facts/pdfs/fs315001.pdf |archive-date=23 December 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Ash bark and leaves are used in modern herbal medicine for its astringent and laxative properties.<ref>{{cite report|author1=Pliûra, A. |author2=Heuertz, M. |title=Common ash – ''Fraxinus excelsior'': Technical guidelines for genetic conservation and use |url=http://www.euforgen.org/fileadmin/templates/euforgen.org/upload/Publications/Technical_guidelines/Technical_guidelines_Fraxinus_excelsior.pdf |date=2003 |publisher=[[EUFORGEN]]}}</ref>