Sumacs are deciduous shrubs, small trees, or vines with small, naked buds. Leaves are alternate and odd-pinnate. Flowers are dioecious, or have unisexual and bisexual flowers on the same plant. Fruit is a drupe. Some plants, such as poison ivy, are highly poisonous.
I. Twigs are densely hairy. Flowers are greenish and open in June or July. Fruits are crimson, hairy, and ripen in August.
Rhus typhina–Staghorn Sumac
II. Twigs are not hairy or only minutely so.
A. Buds are minutely hairy. Twigs are stout and vigorous. Rachis (axis bearing leaflets) is not winged. Flowers are greenish and bloom in July or August. Fruit is scarlet and ripens in August or September.
Rhus glabra–Smooth Sumac
AA.
Buds are not hairy. Twigs are not as stout and vigorous as the smooth sumac. Twigs are often minutely pubescent.
|. Rachis is winged. Leaflets have a few teeth, or are nearly entire, and glossy green. Flowers are greenish and flower in June or July. Fruits are crimson and ripen in September or October.
Rhus copallina–Winged Sumac
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Leaflet stem (rachis) is not winged. Plant is poisonous to the touch, and grows only in bogs or wet soil. There are seven to 13 leaflets per leaf. Flowers are greenish-yellow and bloom in June or July. Fruit is yellow to gray and matures in September.
Rhus (Toxicodendron) vernix–Poison Sumac
Winged Sumac (Shining Sumac)–Rhus copallina
The winged or shining sumac is a nonpoisonous sumac. It is native in the Allegheny Plateau regions of Ohio and is most common in the southeastern part of the state. Winged sumac rarely exceeds 15 feet in height. It furnishes a bright red accent to the landscape during the fall, and is frequently found in large clumps.
The rachis is winged and a good identification feature. Leaves are alternate and odd-pinnate. Leaflets are nearly entire, but may have a few teeth. Foliage color is a deep, glossy green. The entire leaf margins and the winged rachis are normally all that is needed to identify this plant.
Buds are not hairy, and the terminal bud is absent. Twigs are not as stout and vigorous as the smooth sumac. Twigs are often minutely pubescent.
Flowers are polygamous or dioecious, greenish, and flower in June or July. Flowers are borne in terminal panicles. Fruits are crimson and ripen in September or October. The terminal fruits are deeper red and not as showy as the smooth sumac.
Smooth Sumac–Rhus glabra
This species is closely related to the staghorn sumac. The smooth sumac is the most widespread sumac in Ohio and is found in the west central part of Ohio where staghorn sumac is uncommon. The smooth sumac is smaller in statue than the staghorn sumac. The fall color is outstanding and is the most attractive of the sumacs.
The leaves are alternate, 16—24 inches (41—61 cm) long. The odd-pinnate leaves have 11—25 oblong to lanceolate leaflets with toothed (serrate) margins. Leaf stalks are glabrous (not hairy). The rachis (axis bearing the leaflets) is not winged.
The twigs are smooth and lack the hairy velvet covering of the staghorn sumac. Buds are hairy, and the terminal bud is absent. Twigs are stout and vigorous.
The greenish, dioecious flowers appear in June and July and are borne in terminal panicles. Fruit is borne in terminal panicles and is scarlet in color. The fruit ripens in August or September and is showy well into the winter.
Staghorn Sumac–Rhus typhina
The staghorn sumac, also called velvet sumac, is the largest of the native sumacs. Under favorable conditions, it reaches heights of 35 feet and a trunk diameter of 8 inches. The staghorn sumac is found from New Brunswick, Canada, to Minnesota, south to Georgia and Alabama. It occurs in most areas of Ohio, with fertile, dry uplands as its favorite home. It is common on abandoned fields and along fence rows. It is highly prized for its autumn foliage and the coloration of its fruit.
The leaves are alternate, and 16—24 inches (41—61 cm) long. The odd-pinnate leaves have 11—31 lanceolate leaflets with toothed (serrate) margins. Leaf stalks are hairy.
The twigs are stout, clumsy, and covered with a dense coating of velvety hairs. Twigs have conspicuous lateral buds but lack terminal buds. The buds are small, round, and hairy. Leaf scars are U-shaped and contain three groups of small, greenish bundle scars. Twigs contain a wide, yellowish-brown pith and yield a milky sap when cut or bruised.
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| Staghorn Sumac |
The dioecious flowers are small, greenish- yellow, and appear in June or early July. Flowers are borne in pyramidal panicles, 5—12 inches (13—301/2 cm) long and 4—6 inches (10—15 cm) broad. The fruit is a small, pubescent, crimson drupe arranged in conspicuous, red seed heads 5—8 inches (13—20 cm) long and 4—6 inches (10—15 cm) broad.
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| Poison Sumac |
The bark on old trunks is rough and dark brown. On younger trunks it is smooth, thin, and covered with numerous yellowish-brown dots (lenticels). The wood is soft, brittle, rather satiny to touch, orange-colored, and streaked with green.
Poison Sumac–Rhus vernix
The poison sumac is also called swamp sumac and differs from the other sumacs in that it produces ivory white fruit, as does poison ivy. The poison sumac is found from Ontario, Canada, to Minnesota, and south to Florida and Louisiana. This small tree is rare in Ohio, occurring in Geauga, Cuyahoga, Wayne, Wyandot, Licking, Fairfield, and a few other counties. Swamps, low grounds, and moist slopes are its favorite home. This tree is one of our most poisonous plants. Some people are immune from its attack, while others are highly susceptible. A rash is the most common symptom for this plant, as it is for poison ivy, which is closely related.
The leaves are alternate, odd-pinnate, and 7—14 inches (18—351/2 cm) long with 7—13 leaflets. The leaflets are 3—4 inches (71/2—10 cm) long and narrowly egg-shaped. Foliage is dark green and shiny above but paler on lower surface. Leaf margins are smooth (entire). The primary leaflet stem (rachis) is not winged.
The flowers appear in June or July. The pollen-bearing and seed-producing flowers occur on different trees. They are small, yellowish-green, and arranged in drooping panicles. The fruit is a small, round, glossy, ivory-white drupe and arranged in loose, drooping clusters that mature in September.
The twigs are stout, orange-brown, smooth, and glossy. The buds are purplish, about 1/5 inch (5 mm) long and sharp-pointed. The wood is soft, brittle, coarse-grained, and light yellow. The bark is smooth, somewhat streaked, light to dark gray, and marked with elongated dots (lenticels).