Rhus typhina (roos ti-fin’-a)
Family: Anacardiaceae, Cashew or Sumac
Key Steps
- 1b – Alternate leaf arrangement — go to 18
- 18b – Leaf compound — go to 58
- 58b – More than 3 leaflets — go to 59
- 18b – Leaf compound — go to 58
Description
Leaf: Pinnately compound, 12-24 inches long. Leaflets: 11-31, 2-5 inches long, toothed all the way around, round base, long tapered tip. Petiole is very hairy, enlarged at base to encircle bud.
Bud: Hairy, surrounded by leaf scar.
Leaf Scar: U-shaped.
Stem: Very hairy, especially on new growth. Round, over 1/2 inch thick, very small lenticels. No line encircling stem at scar.
Pith: Large, consumes most of the diameter of the stem. Brownish-yellow.
Flower: Male: yellowish-red. Female: red. On separate plants.
Fruit: Red, long, hairy spike-like, terminal upright clusters.
Habit: 15 to 20 feet tall. Open branching, resembling the horns of a male deer. Suckers.
Culture: Low moisture requirement.
Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina ‘Laciniata’) — Leaflets finely and deeply toothed.
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