Rhus aromatica

Rhus aromatica or Rhus trilobata

The Sumac bush is known in latin, depending on which botanist you ask, as Rhus aromatica (for its fragrant leaves) or Rhus trilobata (for the three-lobed leaves). It is quite fragrant, although the smell seems to be a bit controversial, because it has many common names, including fragrant sumac, skunkbush, and lemonade bush. I just call it sumac, because it is by far the most common member of the genus in this region. It is a common desert plant, and also is found in the mountains, although it prefers to be near streams in either setting.

The main use for sumac, as the common name "lemonade bush" implies, is for making a refreshing drink. The ripe, bright red berries have a sour-tasting coating which dissolves in water to make a drinks flavored similar to lemonade. The berries can be used when they are fresh or when they are older and dry, since the important part is on the surface. One should taste a berry before picking a lot from a bush, because the flavor might have already been washed away by rain.

The drink is made by soaking the berries in cold water for a hour or so. Boiling or hot water should not be used, because it could leach out bitter tannins, which would not taste as good. I enjoy the flavor both straight or with a little sweetening. It is tart and refreshing, and my kids love it, especially the girls.

The dry fruits can also be ground up into a lemony-tasting spice, which is especially popular in middle east cooking. It is the main ingredient in the spice mix called za'atar. The species Rhus coriaria is more common in that part of the world, but the spice can be made with any of the common sumac species. It western culture it could be used whenever you might want a lemon-pepper seasoning.

Rhus glabra

Rhus glabra

Smooth sumac (Rhus glabra) is similar to Staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) and can be used in the same ways. Rhus glabra has smooth stems and is common in the western United States, while Rhus typhina has hairy stems and is more common in the eastern United States, and is even considered invasive in some areas.

The main use of sumac is in making the refreshing, tart drink called sumac-ade. It is similar in taste to lemonade and I enjoy it both straight or with a little sweetening added. The ripe red berries are simply soaked in cold water for an hour or so. The tart flavoring is on the outside of the berries, so they can be used when the berries are older and dry, as long as the rain has not washed the flavor away. It is good to taste a berry before picking to be sure it is still tasty. The smooth sumac has the advantage over the more locally common sumac bush (Rhus aromatica) because the berries grow in large clusters at the top of the branches, which makes collection mush easier. Note that the water should not be boiling or hot, because that might leach out bitter tannins which would not taste as good.

Smooth sumac has another edible part which the more common sumac bush lacks. Sumac bush is a dense woody shrub which is fairly slow growing. But smooth sumac puts out significant new branches of growth each year. When these new shoots are young (not yet producing berries at the end) they can be peeled and eaten raw. They are mild tasting and slightly crunchy, from the tip down until the point where pith starts to form in the middle of the stem. In the ones I have found, the shoots which are new branches from main bush are about the same size and flavor as new shoots coming out of the ground from the roots. Sam Thayer has a story (in The Forager's Harvest) about staghorn sumac next to railroad tracks which was mowed down every year, and would grow much larger shoots.

There is a poison sumac plant, which used to be included in the Rhus genus (Rhus vernix). This has been renamed into the Toxicodendron (poison ivy) genus, along with all the other related poisonous, rash-producing species. So it is now called Toxicodendron vernix. Poison sumac has a leaf structure (pinnately compound) resembling Rhus glabra, whereas poison ivy (our local species is Toxicodendron rydbergii) leaves come in threes, and can resemble Rhus aromatica although they are larger. The berries of the poisonous species are greenish or whitish, not red, so that is an easy way distinguish them.