Rhus typhina (staghorn sumac)

By late July, the small flowers have transitioned to eye-catching bright red berries covered in velvety hairs resembling those on a stag’s horn – hence the common name. photo credit: B. Hitz

During the hottest part of midsummer, most native trees and shrubs are not looking their showiest. With spring flowering well past, and fall color still a few months away, many species spend the dog days storing energy from the ample sunlight to produce fruit. An exception is Rhus typhina, commonly called staghorn sumac.

R. typhina is the largest of North American sumacs, reaching up to 25’ tall with a spreading habit. photo credit: B. Hitz

In the Anacardiaceae (sumac) family, R. typhina produces tiny, greenish-yellow flowers in cone shaped panicles from late May to mid June. By late July, these small flowers have transitioned to eye-catching bright red berries covered in velvety hairs resembling those on a stag’s horn – hence the common name. As the season transitions to fall, its compound, serrated leaves turn a brilliant mix of yellow, orange, and red. The fruit continues to darken to blood red through fall and winter and is a valuable food source for many overwintering songbirds.

R. typhina is the largest of North American sumacs, reaching up to 25’ tall with a spreading habit. It spreads aggressively through underground rhizomes and needs a large, open space where it can form colonies. It does well in a broad range of soil types as long as it is in a well drained area. R. typhina is a pioneer plant that appears along roadways, vacant city lots, and other disturbed areas. Because of its similar leaf pattern and similar eagerness to grow in difficult conditions, it is often confused with the non-native and invasive Ailanthus altissima (tree of heaven).

R. typhina is a great addition to a native woodland restoration project because of its ability to attract wildlife during multiple seasons and its potential to outcompete invasive species. photo credit: B. Hitz

This vigorous sumac is best used in informal gardens and naturalized areas. It makes a great roadside screen because of its tolerance of salt spray and its willingness to grow in dry, disturbed areas. The erosion controlling potential is demonstrated on the steep embankment along Chester Road in front of The Inn.

Moreover, R. typhina is a great addition to a native woodland restoration project because of its ability to attract wildlife during multiple seasons and its potential to outcompete invasive species.

LacetteTM is a compact growing selection with a lacy appearance. photo credit: R. Robert

At the 2019 Scott Arboretum Selections: Fall Sale on Saturday, September 14, we will have Rhus aromatic ‘Fine Textured Compact Select A’,  Lacette^TM fragant sumac. Like R. typhina, the fragant sumac is known for its toughness in the landscape as well great fall color. Lacette^TM  is a compact growing selection with a lacy appearance. A great native selection for woodland restoration or erosion control.

Try these sun loving plants in your garden.

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Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower)

E. purpurea is an herbaceous perennial coneflower native to the prairies of the United States. Purple coneflower is a drought tolerant, adaptable plant that thrives in average, dry to medium, well drained soil in full sun to part shade. Growing in clumps 2-4 ft tall and producing purple daisy-like flowers, it readily self-seeds and can be divided after about four years of growth. As a native plant, it has a long bloom time (July – August) and is very adaptable.

This flower is a great choice for a pollinator or wildflower garden. Finches, butterflies, and bees enjoy the seeds and pollen produced by this vigorous plant. E. purpurea can be found in the Scott Entrance Garden and the Pollinator Garden. photo credit: R. Robert

Lilium ‘Anastasia’ (orienpet lily)

This newly introduced lily is the result of hybridizing fragrant oriental lilies with large-flowered trumpet lilies. The result is a spectacularly large flower featuring pinkish inner petals fading to white outer petals. These fragrant flowers are long lasting and each plant can produce 20-30 blooms from mid to late summer.

Reaching 4-7 ft tall, orienpet lilies often need to be staked because of the weight of their giant candelabra of flowers. These lilies perform best in rich, wet, well drained soils in full sun.

The tall statue and striking flowers of Lilium ‘Anastasia’ make it an excellent border plant. It can be paired with other summer flowering plants to produce vibrant color contrasts. Lilium ‘Anastasia’ can be found in the Terry Shane Teaching Garden. photo credit: B. Hitz

Monarda ‘Raspberry Wine’ (bee balm)

Monarda ‘Raspberry Wine’ is a hybrid of Monarda didyma origin, a species in the mint family (Lamiaceae) native to eastern North America. Tubular, raspberry-red flowers protrude from mop-like heads that sit atop square stems featuring opposite, lanceolate leaves.

A perk of the ‘Raspberry Wine’ hybrid is that it is more resistant to powdery mildew than most other Monarda species. Monarda ‘Raspberry Wine’ grows 3-4 ft tall in clumps 2-3 ft across and is a wetland plant; it requires full sun and medium to wet soils that do not dry out. Monarda species are butterfly magnets, as a result they are a staple of butterfly gardens. Monarda ‘Raspberry Wine’ can be found in the Biostream. Photo credit: R. Robert

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Kalmia latifolia (Mountain-laurel)

This Eastern U.S. native shrub, found near the Cunningham House parking lot, boasts some of the more interesting flowers in the plant kingdom. These late spring emerging flowers are cup shaped and five- parted with colors ranging from white to dark pink. The stamens of the flower are bent back into pockets in the petals, creating a spring mechanism that flings pollen when a pollinator disturbs the flower. Mountain-laurels grow 5’-15’ tall and wide and feature whorled, evergreen foliage on the tips of its twigs. These ericaceous shrubs grow best in part shade with rich, well drained soil. Photo credit: R. Robert

Bignonia capreolata (crossvine)

This vigorous flowering vine, located on the ginkgo in West Parrish Circle, uses adhesive discs on the tips of branched tendrils to climb structures. Attractive, bifoliate compound leaves stay evergreen in the South, will turn a deep purple and then drop in the northern parts of its range. In the Bignoniaceae, or trumpet creeper family, the vine has orangish-red trumpet shaped flowers that appear in spring and transition into seed pods in the summer. Its common name, crossvine, is a reference to a cross-shaped marking that is revealed when a cross section of the plant is made. B. capreolata is easily grown in average, well drained soil in part sun to full shade. Photo credit: B. Hitz

Rhus aromatica ‘Gro Low’ (fragrant sumac)

Rhus aromatica, found in the Isabelle Cosby Courtyard, is an eastern North America native shrub. Trifoliate, glossy green leaves resemble a closely related cousin, poison ivy, yet Rhus aromatica does not cause a skin rash. The foliage actually emits a fresh cut grass aroma when bruised, hence its common name, fragrant sumac.

Small, non showy yellow flowers bloom on the twig tips in the early spring before the foliage emerges. These flowers give way to hairy red berries in the summer that are attractive to wildlife. R. aromatica is an excellent native ground cover. It tolerates poor soils and can be used to stabilize erosion prone embankments. The ‘Gro Low’ cultivar is a dense, low growing variety that spreads vigorously via root suckers. Photo credit: B. Hitz

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Cladrastis kentukea, American yellowwood, is a medium sized tree with a patchy native range in the southeastern United States. photo credit: R. Robert

Cladrastis kentukea, American yellowwood, is a medium sized tree with a patchy native range in the southeastern United States. Despite its small native habitat, C. kentukea is hardy to zone 4 and performs well outside of its natural distribution.

White seed pods emerge from the flowers and mature in September to October. photo credit: R. Robert

Growing 40-50’ tall, C. kentukea has a broad, upright branching habit and a rounded crown. Like all members of the Fabaceae (legume) family, C. kentukea has pinnately compound leaves and distinctive five-parted flowers. The flowers are fragrant, white, and arranged in hanging panicles that emerge in mid spring. White seed pods emerge from the flowers and mature in September to October. These pods are accompanied by yellow fall color.

The flowers are fragrant, white, and arranged in hanging panicles that emerge in mid spring. photo credit: R. Robert

C. kentukea is an easy-to-grow tree that prefers medium moisture, well-drained soils, and full sun. Its broad crown makes it an ideal shade tree. C. kentukea is becoming increasingly popular as a yard and street tree. Once relegated to the leafy suburbs, C. kentukea is now being planted on the streets of cities such as Philadelphia.

C. kentukea has pinnately compound leaves. photo credit: D. Mattis

The Society of Municipal Arborists selected C. kentukea as Urban Tree of the Year in 2015. Its deep root system allows for shade plants to be grown underneath. The showy, fragrant flowers of C. kentukea are an added bonus. The tree can be planted near a water feature to enhance the scent of its flowers.

‘Sweetshade’, a slightly stouter tree with a broader crown, is nice cultivar selection. photo credit: G. Wermiling

The heartwood of C. kentukea contains a dye that colors it a deep yellow, hence its common name American yellowwood. This attractive wood has been used to make gunstocks, furniture, and decorative inlays. Some cultivars have recently been selected, such as ‘Perkin’s Pink’, which features pink flowers, and ‘Sweetshade’, a slightly stouter tree with a broader crown. C. kentukea is an excellent choice for your landscape.

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Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Hamburg’ (bigleaf hydrangea)

The thing that struck me about the H. macrophylla ‘Hamburg’, located in the Hydrangea Collection, is the variation of colors on the blooms of a single plant. The compact flower clusters range from deep rose-pink to purple-blue. The flower color can be changed by amending the pH of the soil. Adding sulfur to increase acidity will make the flowers bluer, while adding lime to increase alkalinity will make the flowers pinker. H. macrophylla ‘Hamburg’ boasts a long bloom time from early to late summer. This deciduous, bushy shrub grows 4-5’ wide and prefers full sun to part shade in well drained soils. Photo credit: B. Hitz

Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Slender Silhouette’ (sweetgum)

Liquidambar styraciflua, commonly known as sweetgum, is a deciduous shade tree native to the eastern United States and parts of Mexico. The sweetgum is a sun-loving, low-maintenance tree that tolerates a wide variety of soils. It features star-shaped green foliage with 5 to 7 pointed lobes. Fall color is a mixture of brilliant yellows, oranges, and purples.

The only drawbacks of L. styraciflua are its infamous gumballs. These hard, spiky fruit clusters can cause a mess and pose an ankle-rolling hazard when planted near a sidewalk. The ‘Slender Silhouette’ cultivar, located in the Scott Entrance Garden, is a narrow, upright tree that will not shade out other plants and is an excellent accent for gardens. Photo credit: B. Hitz

Cercis canadensis ‘Ruby Falls’ (eastern redbud)

One of the highlights of the Isabelle Cosby Courtyard is the Cercis canadensis ‘Ruby Falls’. This pendulous cultivar of C. canadensis features an elegant, compact weeping form, and ruby red heart-shaped foliage in the spring that transitions to green as the summer progresses. Pink flowers adorn the branches for several weeks during early to mid spring. Growing only 6’ tall and 4’ wide, this tree is perfect for small gardens. C. canadensis ‘Ruby Falls’ is easy to grow and does well in full sun to part shade in well drained soils. Photo credit: B. Hitz

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