Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Malvids: Sapindales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Rhus aromatica var. aromatica
FAMILY
Anacardiaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
On first glance it looks much like Poison-oak (Toxicodendron pubescens) and less so Poison-ivy (T. radicans), with its three-parted leaves. However, the central (terminal) leaflet of Fragrant Sumac tapers gradually to the base, and appears rather diamond-shaped, unlike the more rounded base of the terminal Poison-oak or Poison-ivy leaflet with a short stalk showing. The leaves of Fragrant Sumac also tend to be rather thick, and they are usually not as shiny as the leaves of Poison-oak or Poison-ivy. Read more at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
The specific epithet is Latin for “aromatic” or “fragrant,” describing the strong and pleasant scent of the crushed leaves. Read more at "Know Your Natives" from the Arkansas Native Plant Society.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Rhus aromatica var. aromatica
FAMILY
Anacardiaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 110-01-004:
Rhus aromatica FAMILY Anacardiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Schmaltzia crenata
COMMON NAME:
Fragrant Sumac, Squawbush
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_sccr3_001_lvd
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JK Marlow jkm120325_760
March McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
Coarsely toothed above mid-leaflet. Lateral leaflets assymmetric & sessile, per Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005).
COMPARE
Fragrant Sumac and Poison Oak
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JK Marlow jkm090404_148
April Walker County GA
Pigeon Mountain
)
JK Marlow jkm090404_172
April Walker County GA
Pigeon Mountain
Straggly, upright, rounded shrub, 1'-7' tall, not poisonous, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
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JK Marlow jkm130407_003
April Columbia County GA
)
JK Marlow jkm170401_368
April McCormick County SC
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm180504_440
May Meriwether-Talbot Counties GA
Sprewell Bluff WMA
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JK Marlow jkm180506_1997
May Crawford County GA
Foliage has sessile terminal leaflets (vs. Toxicodendron pubescens has a prominent petiolule), per Weakley's Flora (2022).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_rhus_aromatica_8
May
Short dense catkin-like clusters open before or during leaf expansion, per Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm140603_378
June Pickens County SC
SC Botanical Garden
Petiolule of terminal leaflet is the same length as the lateral petiolules, per www.carolinanature.com (Cook).
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JK Marlow jkm140603_381
June Pickens County SC
SC Botanical Garden
Leaflets thick, at first pubescent on both surfaces, glabrate in age, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm160611_027
June Edgefield County SC
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_r_aromatica_aroma
June
Fruits roundish, very hairy, bright red, and quite conspicuous, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
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Stephanie C. Brundage scb_101022Hayesville09ed
October Clay County NC
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Rhus aromatica var. aromatica
FAMILY
Anacardiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Rhus aromatica var. aromatica
FAMILY
Anacardiaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 110-01-004:
Rhus aromatica
FAMILY
Anacardiaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Schmaltzia crenata
1235
Shrub
Perennial
Habitat: Dry to dry-mesic upland forests and woodlands, glade margins, stream banks, bluffs, and pastures, eastwards primarily in rocky, rather dry, woodlands, usually over mafic rocks (such as gabbro or diabase) or calcareous rocks, less commonly in sandy soils, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Uncommon (rare in Carolina Coastal Plain)
Click here to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)
DOES THE PLANT HAVE "MILKY SAP"?
Has milky sap (latex)
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Compound: 3 leaflets
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring
Greenish-yellow/White
Usually bisexual
4-5 sepals
4-5 petals
4-5 stamens
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
Red
Drupe
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005) p378
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p257
- Landscaping with Native Trees (Sternberg & Wilson, 1995) p224
- Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants p086
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p086
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p318
- Guide to the Plants of Granite Outcrops (Murdy & Carter, 2000) p71
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p166
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p07
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p292