The Ash Flower
The flower of the Ash tree is dark purple, without petals, and is wind-pollinated (i.e. it does not need bees to help it fertilise). Unusually, in spring, its flowers appear before its leaves do.
The Ash tree is an unusual plant for another reason, though: it is possible for an ash tree to have both male and female characteristics, and therefore male and female flowers – the female flowers are a little longer than the male ones. What’s more, although individual trees usually produce all-male or all-female flowers, both can occur on the same tree – and it is possible for a tree that is all male one year to produce all female flowers the next, and vice-versa.