Smooth Sumac
Smooth sumac is a vigorously suckering native shrub with a graceful appearance. Its leaves are compound with lance-shaped leaflets. They are dark green in color, turning to bright red in the fall.
The clusters of small green-yellow flowers are not that noticeable, but develop into red, fuzzy fruit in late summer through fall, persisting through winter. Suckers can travel ten feet or more from the parent plant, and seedlings appear regularly from germinated seeds.
Smooth sumac looks very similar to staghorn sumac except the stems of the new growth are smooth rather than fuzzy.
Smooth Sumac
Smooth sumac is a vigorously suckering native shrub with a graceful appearance. Its leaves are compound with lance-shaped leaflets. They are dark green in color, turning to bright red in the fall.
The clusters of small green-yellow flowers are not that noticeable, but develop into red, fuzzy fruit in late summer through fall, persisting through winter. Suckers can travel ten feet or more from the parent plant, and seedlings appear regularly from germinated seeds.
Smooth sumac looks very similar to staghorn sumac except the stems of the new growth are smooth rather than fuzzy.
Plant details
Botanic Name
Rhus glabra
Pronunciation
roos GLAB-ruh
Mature Height
10 to 15 ft.
Mature Spread
8 to 10 ft.
Water usage
One Droplet: Water twice per month or less, once established.
Two Droplets: Water about once per week, once established.
Three Droplets: Water about twice per week, once established.
Flower Color
green-yellow
Bloom time
June
Colorado Native
Yes
Natural Habitat
North America
Light Requirements
sun
Cold Hardiness
USDA zones 3-9
Elevation Limit
hardy to 8,000 ft.
Performance
At the Xeriscape Demonstration Garden, smooth sumac is a favorite of deer to rub with their antlers or heads in fall and spring. The rubbing can damage the trunks.
The fruit is quite showy and the fall leaf color is excellent. Fall color can occur as early as late August. This plant can be quite aggressive because of its suckering and seeding habit.
If deer can be kept away and there is room for the plant to colonize, this is a hardy, nice choice for the Colorado Springs area.
Maintenance
Pull up sucker plants and seedlings to control unwanted colonization and prune out any dead or damaged branches.