(Chinese Sumac)

Excellent fall foliage and an intriguing architectural shape are ornamental features of the Chinese sumac worth noting. This large shrub to very small tree is native to most of eastern Asia's forests, from Bhutan to Japan south to Indonesia. This woody shrub will sucker to form a thicket, but with pruning it may be trained into a rather picturesque tree once lowest droopy limbs are removed. It almost always is seen with multiple trunks.

New shoots on the thorny branches are downy and the leaves...

(Winged Sumac)

Fast growing and producing brilliant red fall foliage and edible small red fruits, the winged sumac is only suitable for spacious landscapes. This deciduous, suckering shrub to small tree is native to open woodlands and prairies to the eastern United States: from Maine to Michigan and Missouri, south to eastern Texas and the Florida panhandle. Short, crooked trunks and open branching develops on the winged sumac.

This plant is also called shining sumac because of its attractive glossy deep green...

(Smooth Sumac)

Producing brilliant scarlet fall foliage and edible small red fruits, the smooth sumac is only suitable for spacious landscapes. This deciduous, bushy, suckering shrub to very small tree is native to sunny, dry lands all across North America: from the southern half of Canada to northeastern Mexico. It's the only tree/shrub species native to all of the contiguous United States. Leaning, crooked but beautiful trunks and open branching develops on the smooth sumac.

Distinguish this sumac species...

(Lemonade Berry)

Here's a California native shrub sure to gain your admiration and curiosity. Lemonade berry produces sticky, hairy, salmon-red fruits that may be crushed and used to make a tasty beverage. This evergreen shrub (rarely ever a small tree) is native to the coastal scrub and chaparral habitats of extreme Southern California and into Mexico's Baja California. It naturally grows on cliffs, often exposed to salt spray and winds.

The leathery green leaves are attractive ovals, contrasting the gray bark....

(African Sumac)

Excellent for providing shade in warm and arid regions, African sumac has fine, dark foliage. Its twigs are reddish brown while the smooth, sandy-brown bark cracks open to reveal an orange underlayer. This rounded but spreading, evergreen small tree is native to mild southern Africa.

This sumac's leaves are unique. Each leaf is made of three, very narrow leaflets that are held out to form a T. They are glossy and dark green and held densely in the tree's canopy. Flowers are inconspicuous, green,...

(Skunkbush Sumac)

A low deciduous shrub that offers attractive flowers in spring and bright fruits and foliage in fall, skunkbush sumac is native to western North America. In mid-spring before the leaves emerge, conspicuous clusters of pale yellow flowers appear at the stem tips. Small berries follow, ripening red in late summer. Resembling poison ivy foliage, the downy three-lobed leaves are mildly glossy and medium to dark green. The leaflets have blunt-toothed edges. Bruised leaves release a malodorous scent....

(Staghorn Sumac)

A common eastern North American shrub or small tree, staghorn sumac produces an umbrella-like crown of feathery foliage in summer that turns radiant shades of orange, red and yellow in fall. It is fully deciduous, very hardy and tends to spread forming large colonies over time. The staghorn reference in its common name refers to its stems and leaf petioles which have a fuzzy brown surface, much like that of deer antler velvet. Wild populations are common and tend to inhabit open forests and forest...

(Staghorn Sumac, Tiger Eyes Sumac)

Very ornate, feathery yellow foliage is a hallmark of the Tiger Eyes staghorn sumac. Cultivar 'Bailtiger' also displays a handsome red fruit spike and yellow and orange fall color. A dwarf, upright but spreading shrub with a "flat top", it is native to much of eastern North America; this selection is a mutation of the cultivar 'Laciniata'.

Although the bark is smooth and sandy brown, younger twigs are more reddened with a brown fuzz. In late spring the chartreuse foliage appears. Leaves are...

(Staghorn Sumac)

Very ornate, feathery foliage is a hallmark of ‘Dissecta,’ a cutleaf staghorn sumac. Along with its feathery leaves it has handsome red fruit spikes at the tips of the branches and yellow and orange-red fall color. A deciduous, upright, colonizing, large shrub, it is native to much of eastern North America. It often looks like a multi-stemmed, flat-canopy small tree.

Although the bark is smooth and sandy brown, younger twigs are more reddened with a brown fuzz. In late spring the dark green leaves...

(Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac)

Large, ferny leaves comprised of many fine, deeply cut (laciniate) leaflets are the crowning glory of this more elegant cultivar of staghorn sumac. In fall, the deep green leaves of 'Laciniata' turn eye-catching shades of flaming red. The plants are slightly less vigorous than standard sumac, which is actually a benefit.

A common eastern North American shrub or small tree, staghorn sumac produces an umbrella-like crown of feathery foliage in summer that turns radiant shades of orange, red and...