Rhus glabra
Common name:
Smooth Sumac
Rocky Mountain Sumac
Red Sumac
Western Sumac
Pronunciation:
roos GLAA-bra
Family:
Anacardiaceae
Genus:
Type:
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon:
Yes
- Deciduous, thicket-forming shrub, to 15 ft (4.5 m) tall and similar spread, branches thick, pubescent and light reddish-brown at first, later becoming grayish-brown and smooth, covered with a waxy bloom, leaf scare horseshoe shaped. Leaves alternate, pinnately compound, 30-45 cm long, 11-31 leaflets, each about lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 5-10 cm long, round base, apex acute or tapering, margins serrate, dark green above, pale green to whitish-green below; bright red fall color. Dioecious, male and female plants. Female flowers small, greenish-yellow to white, in elongated terminal clusters (panicles), 15-25 cm long. Fruit bright red, glandular drupe, each about 5 mm, in dense, hairy clusters which remain on bare branches in winter.
- Sun. At its best in slightly acidic to neutral soils with sunny exposures, but grows well in a wide variety of soil types and conditions. Sometimes considered an invasive weed.
- Hardy to USDA Zone 3 Native to much of North America, from Maine to central British Columbia south to Florida and northern Mexico. Occasionally found central and eastern Oregon. Hybridizes with Rhus typhina.
- glabra: without hairs, smooth.
Click image to enlarge
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plant habit, late spring
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leaf
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leaf,underside
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leaf, comparison
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leafy shoot with young flower cluster
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stem, late spring
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flower clusters and leaves
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flower cluster
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flowers
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plant habit, fall
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leaf
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stem
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leaf, fall
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fruit cluster, fall
