Smooth Sumac

Rhus glabra

Anacardiaceae

• Spokane Native
• USDA Zone 2-9
• Full Sun to Part Shade
• Size: 15’ wide x 9'-15’ tall
• Drought Tolerant: Yes
• Evergreen: no
• Flower Color: yellow/green (May - July)
• Provides food for birds, bees, butterflies, and small mammals, deer

Smooth Sumac is a spectacular deciduous shrub that spreads via underground suckers to create striking thickets on dry slopes, prairies, open woodlands, and rocky hillsides. The plant earns its common name from its smooth, hairless bark and twigs, distinguishing it from the closely related fuzzy-stemmed Staghorn Sumac. Large pinnately compound leaves, 12-20 inches long with 11-31 sharply serrated leaflets, create an almost fern-like appearance with shiny dark green summer foliage. The shrub produces dense, pyramidal clusters of tiny yellowish-green flowers in late spring to midsummer. Female plants develop the plant's most iconic feature: brilliant red, hairy berry clusters held upright above the foliage that persist throughout winter, creating dramatic architectural interest against snow. In autumn, Smooth Sumac becomes one of the first shrubs to announce the changing season, transforming hillsides with blazing displays of scarlet, orange, and crimson foliage. The picturesque form features short, crooked trunks with spreading branches that create striking silhouettes in winter. 

Critical winter food source for American Goldfinch, American Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, Blue Jay, Eastern Bluebird, Northern Flicker, Northern Mockingbird, Cedar Waxwing, Ring-necked Pheasant, Wild Turkey, Mourning Dove, Wood Thrush, Warbling Vireo, and numerous other bird species.  Larval host plant for Red-banded Hairstreak butterfly. Supports specialist native bees and provides abundant nectar and pollen for pollinators in early to mid-summer. Berries consumed by squirrels, chipmunks, and other small mammals primarily in winter when other food sources are scarce. White-tailed deer occasionally browse foliage, twigs, and fruits; Cottontail Rabbits gnaw bark during winter. Provides significant protective cover and nesting sites for Field Sparrows and other ground-nesting birds. Dense colonies create important wildlife corridors and thickets that shelter many species. Extremely valuable for winter survival when most other food sources have been depleted.

The berries, rich in vitamin C and ascorbic acid, can be crushed into water to make a tart, lemonade-like drink sometimes called "sumac-ade"—a refreshing beverage that has been enjoyed for centuries. Native peoples used the leaves in smoking mixtures called kinnikinnik and harvested various plant parts for multiple purposes. The leaves and wood produce beautiful black ink and pigments for dyes used in textile, toy, and paper industries. Raw young sprouts were eaten as a salad green. The bark was prepared medicinally to treat various ailments. All parts of the plant contain salicin, closely related to aspirin, and preparations from Smooth Sumac have been used to treat toothache, stomachache, diarrhea, and other conditions. The hard wood has been crafted into various implements, and the picturesque branching structure makes it attractive in dried floral arrangements.

Smooth Sumac excels in naturalized areas, on impossible slopes where even junipers struggle, for erosion control on embankments and difficult sites, in prairie restorations, and in large wildlife gardens where its spreading habit is welcomed. Though too aggressive for small formal gardens or tidy shrub borders, it is unmatched for reclaiming disturbed sites, stabilizing poor soils, and creating bold seasonal drama in challenging locations. The species tolerates drought, heat, wind, alkaline soils, road salt, black walnut toxicity, rocky conditions, and nearly every soil type except poorly drained wet sites. It develops rapidly, is generally pest and disease-free, and requires minimal maintenance once established. Colonies can be rejuvenated every few years by cutting to the ground in mid-winter, and individual suckers can be removed by digging out roots or cutting with a sharp spade if spread needs to be controlled. Best fall color occurs in full sun. For naturalizing, allow drifts and colonies to establish as they would in nature. Plant with Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), Sideoats Grama (Bouteloua curtipendula), native prairie wildflowers, Oceanspray (Holodiscus discolor), Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus), Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), native Roses (Rosa species), and other drought-tolerant prairie and savanna species. Note that some gardeners consider it weedy due to aggressive suckering—site selection is critical.