Winged Sumac

Winged Sumac
Rhus copallinum

Who has never seen a Sumac tree/shrub? Apparently the folks in central Indiana! Here's a map that shows the distribution of all of the species of Rhus (Sumac) in the United States and there is a hole in central Indiana with no Sumac trees to speak of. No Winged, Staghorn, Fragrant, or Smooth Sumacs to be found in that hole. I would challenge all of the botanists that read this blog to explain why this would be, or to go out and find some.

Identifying this Sumac is rather easy if you have the compound leaf. The stem of the leaf has wings!


Notice the "wings" on the stem of the leaf