smooth sumac
Rhus glabra · Anacardiaceae
smooth sumac (Rhus glabra) is a perennial shrub in the Anacardiaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 3 and warmer, down to about -33°F.
⚠ Invasive or noxious status. USDA lists this plant with an invasive or noxious weed status somewhere in its range. Check your state's noxious weed list before planting it — in some states it is illegal to sell or plant.
Both flags are quoted from USDA PLANTS, not inferred.
At a glance
| Type | shrub Derived |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 12 ft USDA |
| Light | full-sun USDA |
| Water need | low USDA |
| Growth rate | moderate USDA |
| Soil pH | 5.3–7.5 USDA |
| Bloom | April–May USDA |
| Flower color | Yellow USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 3 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | shrub Derived |
| Nursery availability | Routinely Available USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It needs full sun. USDA rates it as having low water needs once established. Its drought tolerance is rated medium. It is recorded on soils from pH 5.3 to 7.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 3.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 12 ft, making it a small tree or large shrub. It grows at a moderate rate.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of April through May. Flowers are yellow.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. It carries conspicuous autumn colour. Its fruit or seed heads are conspicuous, extending interest past flowering. Its active growth period is spring and summer. USDA rates its lifespan as short, so plan on replacing or resowing it rather than treating it as permanent structure.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 30 to 60 inches of annual precipitation. It needs at least 135 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 24 inches. Fertility requirement: low — no feeding needed on ordinary garden soil.
Propagating it
Propagate it from seed, bare root and container stock. USDA records no cold-stratification requirement, so seed should germinate without a chilling period. Its seed spreads at a slow rate. It spreads vegetatively at a moderate rate.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals rate it barely palatable — the sourced basis for calling it deer-resistant. Its fire tolerance is rated high, and it can resprout after damage. Its growth form is recorded as rhizomatous.
Role in a guild
Shrub layer. In a layered planting this is woody mid-level structure between the understory and the ground. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Rhus
- fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica
- winged sumac Rhus copallinum
- littleleaf sumac Rhus microphylla
- sugar sumac Rhus ovata
Similar role and hardiness
- black sagebrush Artemisia nova
- common buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis
- American hazelnut Corylus americana
- cranberry cotoneaster Cotoneaster apiculatus
- western dogwood Cornus sericea
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol RHGL, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Invasive status, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, vegetative spread rate, Water need.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer, Type.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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