World Plants

Rhus typhina (Staghorn Sumac)

Michael's Opinion

A native that has use in the cultured as well as the natural environment. The form although stark in winter is interesting with branches topped by the fruit. The autumn colour is spectacular in orange to red. The fruit also makes a refreshing tea on winter hikes when boiled and sugar or honey added; high in vitamin C.

Botanical Information

Family	Anacardiaceae
Genus	Rhus
Species	typhina
Category	Woody
Type	Tree (deciduous), Shrub (deciduous)
Pronunciation

Details

USDA Hardiness Zone	4 - 8
USDA Hardiness Ref.
Canadian Hardiness Zone	3
Canada Hardiness Ref.
RHS Hardiness Zone	H7
RHS Hardiness Ref.
Height	2.5 m
Spread	3 m
Growth	Fast
Flowering Period	June

Description and Growing Information

General Description	A native shrub suitable for quick screening and naturalizing. Used as a specimen in contained areas.
ID Characteristic	Bright green foliage, crimson fruit clusters, wide spreading and its branches are covered in dense velvet hair.
Shape	Wide and spreading.
Landscape	Naturalizing, massing, waste areas, perhaps banks, cuts and fills. It is hard to kill this plant due to its ability to sucker freely from the roots.
Propagation	Seed, scarify for 50-80 minutes in sulfuric acid. Root cuttings collected in the autumn and cut into 50 mm lengths, insert vertically into pots or flats barley covering the top. Water and place in a cold frame until growth appears and then pot individually.
Flower/Leaf Bud Description	Hairy, leaf scars are 'C'-shaped.
Leaf Description	Compound pinnate, alternate and contains 13-27 leaflets. Bright green above, glaucous beneath.
Flower Description	Dioecious, females borne in dense, hairy panicles and male in a bigger, looser, wider panicle. Greenish-yellow in colour.
Fruit Description	Densely hairy drupe, closely packed with in a pyramidal panicle. Bright crimson in early autumn, becoming duller and darker red with cold weather and often still colourful even into the spring.
Colour Description	Bright green in summer, yellow, orange and scarlet in autumn. Flowers are greenish-yellow and fruit is scarlet red.
Texture Description	Medium in summer and coarse in the winter.