The home town of Heritage Fruit Trees, Beaufort, has a wonderful avenue of Claret Ash (Fraxinus angustifolia subsp. oxycarpa 'Raywood') along part of its main street. It's a stunning sight in autumn. It's a great performing ornamental deciduous tree that originated in South Australia in 1910 and has since been grown all over the world. The HortFlora of Victoria has a nice history on its website. It forms a lovely shaped tree, and typically grows into a large ball on a clear trunk. The divided leaves are a glossy dark green over summer and colour in autumn into shades of dark burgundy with flashes of red. The colours are more intense in cold climates. Old spellings include Fraxinus oxycarpa 'Raywood', 'Raywoodi' and 'Raywoodii'.
• Uses: ornamental tree, shade tree, specimen tree, avenue tree, parks, farms, street tree
• Size: 10-15 metres high depending on conditions
• Features: magnificent burgundy autumn foliage, lovely formed tree, Avenue Tree
Reference Lord, E. E. and Willis, J. H. (1982) Shrubs and trees for Australian gardens (5th End). Lothian Publishing Company, Melbourne.
Reference Macoboy, S. (1979) What tree is that? Ure Smith, Sydney.
