Rhus species
The sumac in the image above is growing in a fence row along a road in Christian County, KY. Here in Kentucky, we also see sumacs growing at the edges of forests, in open areas in the woods, on sunny hillsides, and in old fields. They can soak up a lot of sun in such locations (one of the requirements of these small trees.)
Every state in the continental USA has one or more native sumacs. There are 15 or more different native species, not counting poison-ivy, poison-oak, and poison-sumac which are also in the Rhus genus.
I didn't try to identify the sumac in the photo above, but it is probably Rhus glabra (smooth sumac) or Rhus typhinia (staghorn sumac), both of which are common in this area. It's a young tree, judging by the spindly size of its trunk and the lack of fruit.
The sumacs I know, staghorn and smooth, produce a large colorful head of berries that holds on through the winter. The small berries don't have much pulp -- they are mostly seed. They are not a "first-choice" wildlife food, but they are important because many birds and animals eat sumac seeds when the supply of more desirable winter food is exhausted.In the garden, either of these sumacs has year-round visual appeal. Their seedheads are interesting in winter. In the warm months, their long compound leaves have an exotic look. In autumn, they have vivid color. They will grow in almost any soil, even dry, gravelly areas where little else will survive, and they grow very quickly.
Two warnings about using sumac as an ornamental:1. Sumacs form a clump by sending up root suckers.
2. Sumacs have weak wood that breaks easily in severe weather.
In my own experience with sumac, these problems haven't been too difficult to deal with. The suckers are controlled easily enough by mowing regularly. Some branches have broken in storms but we don't have the trees near our house, and they aren't very large trees anyway.
"The power to recognize trees at a glance without examining their leaves or flowers or fruit as they are seen, for example, from the car-window during a railroad journey, can only be acquired by studying them as they grow under all possible conditions over wide areas of territory. Such an attainment may not have much practical value, but once acquired it gives to the possessor a good deal of pleasure which is denied to less fortunate travelers."
3 comments -- please add yours:
Do you have any idea what would cause sumacs to have yellowing, curled leaves, dying back from the tips? I'm looking at some samples someone brought into the extension office. Thanks,
Juanita, Volunteer Master Gardener,
Nebraska.
It surely must be a chemical injury or some change in the soil that they don't like. I wonder if the homeowner might have put too much lime around them while liming the lawn? Just a wild guess. In one of my tree books, it lists several sumacs, and they all require pH 6.1 to 7.0. It also mentions verticillium wilt under diseases, but says it is uncommon.
yes i would like to know if these trees need both male and female to produce fruit..or do they have to be a certain age.. Debbie..alfred ontario
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