Ailanthus (; derived from ailanto, an Ambonese word probably meaning " tree of the gods " or " tree of heaven ") is a genus of trees belonging to the family Simaroubaceae, in the order Sapindales ( formerly Rutales or Geraniales ).

Examples of trees that do well as pollards include broadleaves such as beeches ( Fagus ), oaks ( Quercus ), maples ( Acer ), black locust or false acacia ( Robinia pseudoacacia ), hornbeams ( Carpinus ), lindens or limes ( Tilia ), planes ( Platanus ), horse chestnuts ( Aesculus ), mulberries ( Morus ), redbud ( Cercis canadensis ), tree of heaven ( Ailanthus altissima ) and willows ( Salix ), and a few conifers, such as yews ( Taxus ).

There are several species of Saturniidae that are also farmed for their silk, such as the Ailanthus moth ( Samia cynthia group of species ), the Chinese Oak Silkmoth ( Antheraea pernyi ), the Assam Silkmoth ( Antheraea assamensis ), and the Japanese Silk Moth ( Antheraea yamamai ).

The Ailanthus webworm is thought to be native to South Florida and the American tropics ( south to Costa Rica ), habitat to its original larval host plants, the Paradise Tree ( Simarouba glauca ) and Simarouba amara.

* Ailanthus altissima ( Tree of Heaven ) – northern and central mainland China, Taiwan, arguably the best known species.

* Ailanthus vilmoriniana, which according to an unpublished checklist is a synonym of Ailanthus altissima.

* Ailanthus triphysa ( White Siris ) – northern and eastern Australia.

Ailanthus malabarica is a synonym of Ailanthus triphysa.

Ailanthus are capable of forming thick blankets of roots and heavy shade to the extent that native species are prevented from being able to reclaim an area that has been logged or deforested, as well as areas that have been heavily developed.

A silk spinning moth, the Ailanthus silkmoth ( Samia cynthia ), lives on Ailanthus leaves, and yields a silk more durable and cheaper than mulberry silk, but inferior to it in fineness and gloss.

Other Lepidoptera whose larvae feed on Ailanthus include Endoclita malabaricus.

), black cherry ( Prunus serotina ), and tree-of-heaven ( Ailanthus altissima ); and beachgrass ( Ammophila breviligulata ) dune.

In 1852 a rich Englishman, George Watson-Taylor, bought Monte Cristo and transformed Cala Maestra into a garden, planting eucalyptus and many exotic plants, among them the Asiatic Ailanthus altissima, an invasive species which now infests the island.

Until March 26, 2008, a-tall 75 year old Tree of Heaven ( Ailanthus altissima ) was a prominent centerpiece of the sculpture garden at the museum.

The Ailanthus webworm, Atteva aurea, is an ermine moth now found commonly in the United States.

Ailanthus, common-name Tree of Heaven, is considered an invasive species, although it is still sold by nurseries as yard plant, mainly because it is one of the species that will grow in polluted or otherwise difficult places.

It includes some rare species like the Dawn Redwood and the local Ailanthus.

The tree of heaven, Ailanthus altissima, produces allelochemicals in its roots that inhibit the growth of many plants.

Ailanthus altissima (), commonly known as tree of heaven, ailanthus, or in Standard Chinese as chouchun (), is a deciduous tree in the Simaroubaceae family.

Unlike other members of the genus Ailanthus, it is found in temperate climates rather than the tropics.

Ailanthus has become a part of western culture as well, with the tree serving as the central metaphor and subject matter of the best-selling American novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith.

The buildings are separated in mid-block by the narrowest of access alleys, giving glimpses of Ailanthus foliage in the side-street yards.

The best-known species is the temperate Chinese Tree-of-heaven Ailanthus altissima, which has become a cosmopolitan urban weed tree.

Woody vegetation in the catchment of the lake consists of Melia, Ailanthus, Robinia, Daphne, Celtis, Rose, Ephedra, Pinus roxburghii, Pinus halepensis, Pinus gerardiana, Cupressus torulosa and Cupressus arizonica.

He watched the girl until she had gone into the trees, and waited until he couldn't hear the sound of her horse any longer, then went up to where the children were sleeping.

The trees were crowded so closely together that their branches overlapped, virtually shutting out the sun completely.

A hay-wagon moved slowly along the gutter, the top of it swept by the low boughs of the maple trees, and loose straws were left hanging tangled among the leaves.

Modern warfare was born in this campaign -- periscopes, camouflage, booby traps, land mines, extended order, trench raids, foxholes, armored cars, night attacks, flares, sharpshooters in trees, interlaced vines and treetops, which were the forerunners of barbed wire, trip wires to thwart a cavalry charge, which presaged the mine trap, and the general use of anesthetics.

This is a black swamp clay in which about one hundred million years ago cypress-like trees were growing.

In the Delaware River, three long islands were overgrown with greening trees and underbrush.

Demons, fairies, angels, and a host of other spiritual beings were as much a part of the experiential world of western man as were rocks and trees and stars.

Love and hatred and fear were one here, shaded only by fig trees and grape vines.

Beyond his window were the greening trees, new spring, eternal hope, eternal life.

Most of the pilings that form the foundation of Venice were made from alder trees.

During a complex creation myth in which the cosmic cow licked Buri free from the ice, the sons of Buri's son, Bor, who were Odin, Vili and Vé, constructed the universe and put Midgard in it as a residence for the first human couple, Ask and Embla, whom they created from driftwood trees in Section 9.

According to Benjamin Thorpe " Grimm says the word embla, emla, signifies a busy woman, from amr, ambr, aml, ambl, assiduous labour ; the same relation as Meshia and Meshiane, the ancient Persian names of the first man and woman, who were also formed from trees.

Ammianus relates ( xvii. 1. 11 ) that much later the Emperor Julian undertook a punitive expedition against the Alemanni, who by then were in Alsace, and crossed the Main ( Latin Menus ), entering the forest, where the trails were blocked by felled trees.

People decorated their homes and trees with paper flags ; there were ritual races, processions, dances, songs, prayers, and finally human sacrifices.

The first Arbor Day was held on April 10, 1872 and an estimated one million trees were planted that day.

Six million more were planted in November the same year, and another 12, 5 million trees in 2009.

On the first Arbor Day, April 10, 1872, an estimated one million trees were planted.

The products of oak trees were once an important food for swine and a farmstead may have been named for such produce.

The Bastarnae tried to retreat into the forest but were hampered by the wagon-train carrying their women and children, as these could not move through the trees.

The apple trees were a mass of pink and white, and the lilac trees were in blossom.