Brush - Range & Pasture - Sumac

BES-TEX BRUSH ID GUIDE

Sumac

Flameleaf, Smooth, and Skunkbush (Fragrant) Sumac

Rhus copallina, R. glabra, R. aromatica

Perennial Woody Brush

Plant Type

Shrub or small tree; sumac family (Anacardiaceae)

Life Cycle

Perennial; native

Leaf Habit

Deciduous (flameleaf sumac, Texas A&M)

Typical Height

Skunkbush: up to 10 ft (Texas A&M)
Flameleaf and smooth: [PLACEHOLDER]

Photo Gallery

Smooth sumac stout, hairless winter twig — **Winter Twig** Photo: DouglasGoldman, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Close view of a smooth sumac twig showing a U-shaped leaf scar around a fuzzy bud — **Leaf Scar and Bud** Photo: DouglasGoldman, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to Identify It

Quick ID

Flameleaf Sumac

Long, narrow, compound leaves that turn red in fall
Small whitish flower clusters in early summer, then red fruit
Spreads by rhizomes into mottes (Texas A&M)

Skunkbush Sumac

Scented leaves in groups of three leaflets
Yellow flowers, red fruit (Texas A&M)

Smooth Sumac

ID details: [PLACEHOLDER]

Look-Alikes

Poison ivy

How to tell it apart from skunkbush sumac: [PLACEHOLDER]

Counter script: "If it is a clumping shrub with long compound leaves that turn bright red in fall and red berry clusters, it is most likely a sumac."

Where It Grows

Texas

Flameleaf: eastern, central, and southern Texas (Texas A&M)
Skunkbush: eastern and west-central Texas (Texas A&M)

Oklahoma

Smooth sumac: throughout the state (OSU)

New Mexico

[PLACEHOLDER]

Sites and soils: Flameleaf: rocky hills, woods, and bottomlands. Skunkbush: woodlands, hills, sand dunes, and rocky soils (Texas A&M).

Best Time to Control

The PastureGard HL label lists broadcast timing for sumac from late spring through summer.

Sumac is a woody perennial. No pre-emergent herbicide controls sumac.

Treatment Methods

Foliar (Leaf) Spray

Example products: Surmount (lists flameleaf, skunkbush, and smooth sumac) or PastureGard HL (lists sumac), both Corteva
PastureGard HL high-volume mix (label): 0.5 to 1% + 1 qt nonionic surfactant per 100 gal

Basal Bark and Cut Stump

Remedy Ultra and PastureGard HL list sumac
PastureGard HL (label): 25% in oil; Remedy Ultra (label): 20 to 30% in oil

Individual Plant vs. Broadcast

Surmount and PastureGard HL are labeled for broadcast; follow the label
Density guidance: [PLACEHOLDER]

Product names are examples only. Always read and follow the product label. For product selection and help, contact BES-TEX at 325.653.1300.

Sources: Surmount label, EPA Reg. No. 62719-480; PastureGard HL label, EPA Reg. No. 62719-637; Remedy Ultra label, EPA Reg. No. 62719-552; Texas A&M Plants of Texas Rangelands; Oklahoma State University Extension.