Fragrant Sumac
Rhus aromatica
Citrus-scented foliage, first-of-spring nectar for native bees, and weeks of orange-red fall color. Birds take the fuzzy berries into winter.
Typically 1 quart–3 gal · $17–$85 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
Aromatic native shrub with first-of-spring blooms for bees, fall color, and bird-feeding berries. in dry sites that challenge everything else.
Fragrant sumac is a medium-sized native shrub that earns every square foot it occupies. Crush a leaf and you get that sharp, resinous, citrus-adjacent fragrance immediately. In early spring, yellow flower clusters appear before the leaves, providing some of the first nectar of the season for native bees that have just emerged from overwintering. The three-lobed leaves are clean and attractive through summer. Come fall, the plant turns deep orange to red in a display that holds for weeks on dry slopes and open edges. The fuzzy red berries that follow are eaten by birds from fall through early winter. It spreads by root suckers to form loose, naturalistic colonies, excellent for slope stabilization and naturalized edges where a single-stem shrub would look out of place. This is the standard species; 'Gro-Low' is the more compact cultivar. Both are exceptional.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown fragrant sumac propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
Plant fragrant sumac instead of Autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata) on dry slopes. Same job in the garden, without the spread.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Average
- Mature size
- 3–6 ft · 5–10 ft wide
- USDA zones
- 3–9
- Family
- Anacardiaceae
- Native range
- Eastern and central North America from Vermont to Florida, west to Idaho and Texas
Care notes for fragrant sumac.
Full sun to light shade in dry, well-drained to average soil. Tolerates clay, sand, and rocky conditions. Drought tolerant once established. Spreads by suckering; remove suckers or let the colony expand depending on the setting. No fertilization needed. Cut hard to the ground in late winter every few years to keep growth dense and fresh.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside fragrant sumac.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.