A Series on Wood- Spotlight on Ash

We continue our readers' education with a focus on ash wood. If you consult Norse mythology, it'll tell you that ash is "the mighty tree that supports the heavens." Bold statement. While that might not be the case in modern history, ash is an important wood varietal which is incorporated into many beautiful furniture designs.

It hails from the olive family, sans olives. Its only fruit is a seed, shaped like a dart-like wing. Ash's relation to food continues with its popularity as a food container. The wood has no taste, so it works well in this capacity. Another ash fun fact? Admiral Richard Byrd's show shoes for his polar expeditions were made from ash. One more ash fun fact? It used to be the primary component in the design in all tennis racquets!

While you won't see much ash in the racquets used at Wimbledon this year, the uses today are many--flooring, doors, cabinets and paneling for the kitchen, sporting equipment like hockey sticks and baseball bats, and most importantly to Decibel Designs, in beautiful furniture. Ash has measurable strength and is very shock resistant, so it's great for steam bending. It dries quickly with little to no degrade. It's light colored, varying in shade from light brown to gray to pale yellow. The texture is course.  It's straight-grained.

So where does one find the beautiful ash tree? It's peppered throughout the eastern states of the US, where the trees can grow as tall as 120 feet with diameters up to five feet. 

Interested in learning more about this dynamic wood? Give us a shout!