Scientific name
Rhus typhina
Family
Anacardiaceae
Botanical description
Habit: Small tree, typically forming a low, spreading dome to 7m in height, often with multiple trunks.
Bark: Brown, with fine texture.
Shoots: Densely covered in velvety hairs, resembling stag antlers.
Buds: Small (4mm), dome-shaped, hairy and orange in colour, lacking scales. Concealed within the leaf base during the growing season.
Leaves: Pinnate, reaching up to 60cm in length, with up to 25 leaflets. Leaflets are serrated with elongated tips. Autumn colour is often crimson; leaves may persist into winter.
Flowers: Dioecious. Cultivated specimens are frequently female, producing dense, crimson fruiting panicles that remain on the tree until spring.
Photo identification
Status
Neophyte
Habitat and distribution
Dry, rocky or gravelly soils, in old fields, clearings, roadsides, forest edges, and open woods.
Parts used for food
Shoots. Fruit.
Harvest time
Summer and early Autumn.
Food uses
The young shoots can be peeled and eaten raw.
The red-flame like fruit bobs can be used in drinks. Dried and crushed they make an acceptable substitute for the Middle Eastern spice known as Sumac.
The liquid extract from staghorn sumac lemonade can be made into jelly.
Nutritional profile
The fruits contain significant amounts of vitamin C.
Recipes
Other uses
Native American tribes smoked a mixture of the leaves, fruits along with other herbs and tobacco.
Safety note
The sap can cause a skin rash in some people. Do not confuse with the toxic Rhus verniciflua.
References
Anon (n.d.) Cowasuck Band of the Pennacook-Abenaki People – Sub- Memorial Ceremonies.
Elias, T. S. & Dykeman, P. A. (2009) Edible wild plants: a North American field guide to over 200 natural foods. New York: Sterling.
Peterson, L. & Peterson, R. T. (1978) A field guide to edible wild plants of Eastern and Central North America. The Peterson field guide series?; no. 23. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
Thayer, S. (2006) The forager’s harvest: a guide to identifying, harvesting, and preparing edible wild plants. Ogema: Forager’s Harvest.