Climate tree bladder ash

Tree: While it grows relatively tall in its native habitat, in our latitudes it reaches a maximum of 5-7 m, which makes the bladder ash suitable for smaller gardens as a house tree and magnificent specimen. The initially rounded crown later develops into a veritable umbrella of leaves, in the light shade of which a seat is ideal in summer. The dark green leaves are large and pinnate and are reminiscent of the ash that gives the tree its name; however, the foliage is much more delicate, making the tree appear much more graceful. The ornamental foliage alone gives it great garden value - especially as its leaves display a magnificent bright autumn coloration in yellow and orange. In spring, the reddish buds that sprout give the crown an attractive shimmer of color.

Flowers and fruit: In July to August, feathery, branched inflorescences up to 35 cm long form, which seem to float above the leaves like a fragrant veil in bright golden yellow. The tree thus fills a flower gap after the main flowering period of many of our garden plants in May and June and is therefore a valuable bee pasture. The bladder ash takes about four years to reach flowering age; it flowers and bears fruit best in hot summers. The blistered fruits, reminiscent of small lanterns, gave it its name.

Site requirements: The bladder ash has no special requirements, but prefers nutrient-rich soil and a full sun, warm location - where it flowers most profusely. It grows on loamy, sandy, acidic, alkaline and also poor soils and copes well with drought. Despite its rather shallow roots, it also tolerates strong winds, but not salty winds near the coast. However, a somewhat sheltered spot is better. The tree is also smoke-hardy, so it copes well with exhaust fumes and other air pollution in urban areas.

Special notes: The BIasen ash belongs to the soap tree family; in its native country it is therefore used to make soap due to its high saponin content. The black seeds are popular for making necklaces and rosaries or they are roasted and eaten. The leaves and young shoots are eaten cooked in Asia.

In recent years, we have been increasingly confronted with extreme weather events, even in our latitudes: rising temperatures, prolonged dry spells, extreme precipitation or summer storms. And it is becoming increasingly apparent that some native tree species are not (or no longer) able to cope with this, so that the condition of forests is more threatening than ever. First and foremost, therefore, this is a problem for the forestry industry, but in domestic gardens, too, many trees are no longer healthy and stable.

It is now necessary to find alternatives, for the outdoors as well as for parks and gardens. The so-called "climate trees" are particularly robust tree species that cope better with the changed climatic conditions and, for example, tolerate heat and drought better than spruce, beech and co., or are less sensitive to storms and strongly fluctuating temperatures.

Not all of these species can do everything, so it is important to choose carefully which characteristics are particularly important for different locations. For example, climate trees for the home garden should not grow too tall (in forests, of course, it looks different), they should show ornamental aspects such as flowers or autumn color and also provide habitat for birds and insects.

We offer a number of such species in our assortment: some are new additions, others were already present and are newly presented as climate trees.