Common name: Tree of Heaven
Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle APNI* 
Description: Tree to 8 m high, deciduous, suckering to form dense thickets.
Leaves 20–35 cm long; leaflets mostly 9–21, ovate to narrow-ovate, 4–13 cm long, 25–50 mm wide, apex acuminate, base rounded, margins lobed near base with a gland at apex of each lobe; petiole 4–7 cm long; petiolules 2–10 mm long.
Panicles 6–12 cm long. Calyx lobes c. 1 mm long. Petals c. 3 mm long, white, woolly at base. Stamens dimorphic, c. 2.5 mm long in male flowers. Carpels 5; styles fused. Samaras 3.5–5 cm long, 6–10 mm wide, yellowish.
Distribution and occurrence: Often cultivated; widely naturalized due to its suckering habit, and this makes it difficult to eradicate. Native of China.
NSW subdivisions: *NC, *CC, *SC, *CT, *ST, *NWS, *CWS, *SWS
Other Australian states: *Qld *Vic. *W.A.
Text by G. J. Harden
Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 2 (1991)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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