''Fraxinus uhdei'', commonly known as tropical ash or Shamel ash, is a species of tree native to Mexico and Central America. It is commonly planted as a street tree in Mexico and the southwestern United States. It has also been planted and spread from cultivation in Hawaii, where it is now considered an invasive species. Like other species in the section ''Melioides'', ''Fraxinus uhdei'' is

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...

, with male and female flowers produced on separate individuals.

Taxonomy

The tropical ash was originally described as a variety of '' Fraxinus americana'' (white ash) by in 1883 and was separated as a different species in 1907 by Alexander von Lingelsheim. The specific epithet ''uhdei'' refers to

Carl Uhde Carl may refer to: *Carl, Georgia, city in USA *Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community *Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name *Carl², a TV series * "Carl", an episode of tel ...

, a German plant collector who explored Mexico in the 1840s. ''Fraxinus uhdei'' is locally known as ''fresno blanco'' in Spanish; other English vernacular names include Hawaiian ash and Mexican ash. The name Shamel ash refers to

Archie Shamel Archie is a masculine given name, a diminutive of Archibald. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname *Archie Alexander (1888–1958), African-American mathematician, engineer and governor of the US Virgin Islands * Archie Blake (mathematici ...

, who introduced the trees to California in the 1920s. It is known as Urapan in Colombia, where it was introduced in the 1950s.

Ecology

A dieback caused by a phytoplasma was recorded in Colombia and Ecuador in 2004.

References

uhdei Flora of North America Dioecious plants Trees of Central America Trees of Mexico Flora of the Central American pine–oak forests {{Oleaceae-stub