34 Sumac Cluster
Image of the Tree You are Viewing
Basic Information about this tree
- Scientific Name: Rhus typhina
- Common Name: Staghorn Sumac, Velvet Sumac, Fuzzy Sumac, Hairy Sumac
- Deciduous
- Native Native to woodland edges, roadsides, railroad embankments and stream/swamp margins from Quebec to Ontario to Minnesota south to Georgia, Indiana and Iowa.
- Image of the tree you are viewing: GPS Longitude 92.90226 W Latitude 45.00323 N
- Condition and age guess of the tree you are viewing: five years, healthy
- Branch Structure: This is an open, spreading shrub (sometimes a small tree) that typically grows 15-25’ tall. It is particularly noted for the reddish-brown hairs that cover the young branchlets in somewhat the same way that velvet covers the horns of a stag (male deer), hence the common name. Branches are crooked and sometimes tangled.
- Typical height and width at maturity: 15-25 ft tall by 20-30 ft wide if in open space, but much narrower in sumac clusters.
- Typical longevity: 50-100 years
- Soil, water, sunlight preferences: Thrives in average, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Tolerant of a wide range of soils except for those that are poorly drained. Generally tolerant of urban conditions. This is a suckering shrub that will form thickets in the wild via self-seeding and root suckering.
- Growth habit of roots: Has a fibrous, meandering root system called rhizomes, a lateral root system that spreads outward three or more feet per year, reaching depths of about 10 inches, sending out rootlets and shoots from underground nodes to form clumps or colonies. Cutting or fire injury encourages sprouting. The oldest trees are in the center of the colony, with younger plants radiating outward.
- Flowering type: dioecious, tree either has all male flowers (staminate) or all female flowers (pistillate).
- Pollination strategy: Insects particularly bees, wasps, beetles.
Mature Tree branch with fruit in Winter/ Tree in Summer
Leaves in Summer / Fall
Flowers - Dioecious- Female & Male on separate Trees
Pyramidal, branching cluster of short-stalked flowers at the tips of branches, with male and female flowers on separate plants and the clusters of male flowers rather larger than those with female flowers. Flowers are less than ¼ inch across with 5 yellowish to greenish petals. Male flowers are slightly larger than female flowers and have 5 yellow-tipped stamens; female flowers have a 3-parted style in the center. The calyx cupping the flower has 5 pointed lobes about as long as the petals. Flower stalks and the calyx are densely covered in short hairs.
Fruit (drupe type) unripe and Ripe
Each cluster contains numerous hairy, berry-like drupes which ripen bright red in autumn, gradually turning dark red as they persist through much of the winter.
Bark of Mature Tree / root system description
Staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) has a wide-spreading, fibrous root system that can grow outward three or more feet per year. The roots are relatively shallow, usually reaching only about 10 inches underground. However, staghorn sumac can form dense thickets with multiple trunks connected to a single root system.
Uses in Traditional and Modern Eras
Value for wildlife: Bees, wasps, and beetles are strongly attracted to the flowers. Some bird and small mammal species eat the fruits.
Utility for Humans: Has some nice ornamental features (flower panicles in spring, shiny dark green summer foliage, fruiting clusters in fall and excellent fall foliage color), but is probably too weedy and aggressive for shrub borders or foundations.
Homeowner’s Corner: Best for dry, informal, naturalized areas where it can be allowed to spread and form colonies. May spread aggressively by root suckers. Effective when massed on slopes for erosion control or in hard-to-cover areas with poorer soils. Naturalize in open woodland areas, wood margins or wild areas. No serious insect or disease problems. Some susceptibility to leaf spots, rusts, powdery mildew, blister and cankers. Scale, aphids and caterpillars may appear. Watch for mites.