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October 22, 2009 : Rhus typhina
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Plant Family / Families: Anacardiaceae
Scientific Name and Author: Rhus typhina L.
Institution: Carolinain Forest, University of British Columbia Botanical Garden / New Brunswick Botanical Garden
Name Location: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada / Edmundston, New Brunswick, Canada
Lindsay is responsible for today's written entry. I made the scan from leaves leaflets (thanks Richard, in comments below) collected by Emily P., another one of the garden's work-study students. The leaves leaflets were picked from the ground in UBC Botanical Garden's Carolinian Forest. The photo of the plant habit was made in New Brunswick. Lindsay writes:
Over Thanksgiving weekend, I was able to go home to the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island where the fall colour of the Rhus typhina was at its peak in the slightly cooler climate. The amber colour was spectacular against its elegant branching.
A native of eastern USA and southern Canada, staghorn sumac favours dry sites and poor soil -- it will often grow where other plants would be unable to survive. Sometimes seen as a "weedy" species because of its spreading rhizomes, Rhus typhina can remain quite manageable if left undisturbed. Unlike other members of Anacardiaceae, no parts of Rhus typhina are poisonous. It was used to make a kind of "sumac-ade" by First Nations, and also apparently makes a nice wine.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at October 22, 2009 3:45 PM
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Comments
Posted by: Theresa at October 22, 2009 4:22 PM
Pretty!
Would love to see a photo of the flower/berries too!
Posted by: Edith at October 22, 2009 4:59 PM
Managable if left undisturbed???
Posted by: Dori at October 22, 2009 5:28 PM
Gorgeous leaves! I'll have to start paying a bit more attention to this species as it's turning next year! Most have already gone completely red around here.
Posted by: Em at October 22, 2009 5:55 PM
Wow!!
Posted by: Meg Bernstein at October 22, 2009 5:55 PM
Thank you, Lindsay. I just returned to Vancouver from teaching on Vancouver Island. It is particularly interesting, and satisfying, to note just how often staghorn sumac is used on roadside berms and on erosion prone slopes adjacent the Island Highway. It was in glorious array. Also had the opportunity to see it among other native plants that are being re-established at Buttertubs Marsh in Nanaimo. Ann Kent.
Posted by: Ann Kent at October 22, 2009 6:10 PM
just beautiful thank you
many images and write ups on this tree
are on the net from forestlady on flicer
wildflowers . org lady bird johnson
the trees are welcome autum sight
as the song reads the autum leaves
drift by my window the autum
leaves of red and gold
Posted by: elizabeth a airhart at October 22, 2009 6:33 PM
My bet friend in 2nd grade was Laurie Millen. She lived in town, in a neighborhood arranged in "blocks". The middle of the block she lived on, where all the backyards ran together, was a miniature forest, all of Sumac. It was truly a magical place, all the trees were about the same size, very regularly spaced because of the way they grow- no one had planted them. Their trunks looked silver in some lights, like creepy grabby monsters in the dark, and in autumn the leaves turned scarlet. Breathtaking. It was just the right size for children to play in. To adults our magical woods was just a patch of brush. But the interior of it was clear of everything except the little trees.
We made "Girl Scout Lemonade" by soaking the berries in cold water and adding sugar.
I use these little copse of bright, hardy trees in landscape designs. They will grow almost anywhere.
Posted by: Connie at October 22, 2009 6:59 PM
I am curious about the pattern of color change on the leaves. I have seen something similar here in NE Missouri on an ornamental pear, but only on one out of several. What causes it?
Posted by: Judith Solberg at October 22, 2009 8:30 PM
At Darts Hill Garden Park in Surrey [at 16th Ave. and 170th St.] we have Rhus typhina 'Tiger Eyes' or 'Bailtiger'which has even more spectacular fall color and has the advantage of not getting as large or invasive as the typical Rhus. We are having an Open House and Plant Sale THIS Saturday, October 24 10-4. Come and see the Rhus typhina 'Tiger Eyes' in Bed #30. It is special!
Posted by: Nancy Armstrong at October 22, 2009 8:36 PM
Remember your basic botany, these are leaflets, not leaves :)
Posted by: Richard at October 22, 2009 10:02 PM
stunning, nice juxtaposition of photos.
Posted by: megan at October 22, 2009 10:36 PM
Beautiful leaves and brilliant in it's home enviroment but a right pest in this neck of the woods.
We have some at the college we are keen to get rid of!
Posted by: jan at October 23, 2009 1:49 AM
When I was in a Woody Plant Material class, about 30 years ago, we had some lovely 'Rhus juice' that had been made by the professor. He did caution us before we sipped any and told us that there was some history of the native americans using it as a abortifactant. I've always remembered this but has it been disproven is the intervening years?
Posted by: Kim at October 23, 2009 5:31 AM
One correspondent above wonders about the invasiveness of Rhus typhina. It runs, especially in the sun in well-drained soil, but locally (in the Vancouver area) it does not spread far, and the individual stems are somewhat short-lived. Another mentions that R. typhina is a native, which it is, in North America. It's native range is southern Quebec to Ontario, south to Georgia, Indiana and Iowa. The sumac species native to British Columbia is R. glabra (smooth sumac). Both species are glorious for autumn colour.
Posted by: Douglas Justice at October 23, 2009 8:31 AM
all of the Comox valley is glowing right now spectacular to see before winter sets in
Posted by: Tanis Teichrib at October 23, 2009 8:33 AM
Outstanding! Love the colors... we don't get those kinds of colors in Miami, FL.
Posted by: Scott at October 23, 2009 8:53 AM
LOVE the top photo! Gorgeous colors. If you made a poster, I would buy it. I do wish there was a way to print some of these photos, as many are suitable for framing.
Posted by: chico at October 23, 2009 9:11 AM
Ah, of course Richard. Thanks.
Posted by: Daniel Mosquin 
at October 23, 2009 12:10 PM
It is so nice to see specimens from my two homes side-by-side!
Posted by: lindsay at October 23, 2009 6:33 PM
I have a sumac leaf picture that is similarly mottled: http://www.flickr.com/photos/23111668@N03/2954067862/in/set-72157617344288593/
and also of the hairy fruit:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23111668@N03/2673173910/
Posted by: andrea at October 25, 2009 11:09 AM
Please share your comments about the photograph(s) and accompanying write-up. Telling a story about the subject of the photograph(s) is also much appreciated! If you have a gardening question, the best place to ask is on the UBC Botanical Garden Forums. Thank you!
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I love Autumn.