# Poison Sumac (Toxicodendron vernix)

> Poison sumac, Toxicodendron vernix: a plant of 6 to 25 feet for zones 3 to 9, when it flowers and fruits, the natives it is mistaken for, and how to handle it.

Blue Whale Trees, a native tree nursery in the United States. Web version: https://bluewhaletrees.com/species/poison-sumac/

![Poison sumac branches with long leaves of paired, smooth-edged, pointed leaflets against a blue summer sky](https://bluewhaletrees.com/img/species/poison-sumac-1000.jpg?v=c59af337 "Poison sumac at Cedarburg Bog State Natural Area in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, on June 16, 2013. Its leaflets have smooth edges, unlike the toothed leaflets of staghorn sumac.")
*Photo: Freekee, [CC0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en) ([source](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3APoison_sumac_-_Cedarburg_Bog_State_Natural_Area_in_Ozaukee_County%2C_Wisconsin%2C_June2013.jpg))*

Shrub, 6 to 25 feet, zones 3 to 9; full sun, part shade or shade; average or wet ground.

We do not grow poison sumac, and it is not in our shop. This page is for telling it from the natives we grow.

## At a glance

| Fact | Poison Sumac |
| --- | --- |
| Other names | Swamp sumac, thunderwood, poison elder |
| Form | Shrub |
| Height, feet | 6 to 25 |
| Spread, feet | Up to 6 |
| Zones | 3 to 9 |
| Sun | Full sun, part shade or shade |
| Soil moisture | Average or wet ground |
| Growth | Medium |
| Leaves | Deciduous |
| Traits | Fall color, wildlife value |
| Flowers | May to July |
| Fruit | Drupes, August to February |
| Pollination | Poison sumac's male and female flowers usually grow on separate plants, and its whitish fruit forms from the female flowers. |
| Black walnut | Not named on the Morton Arboretum's lists |
| Toxicity | The leaves, stems, flowers, fruit, bark and sap are poisonous to people, but not to birds and other animals. |
| Ground | Stream banks, swamps and wet flats |
| Native in | 29 states and the District of Columbia |

Poison sumac is native in 29 states and the District of Columbia: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. The states are the USDA PLANTS Database's records.

## Often mistaken for

[Staghorn sumac](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/staghorn-sumac/index.html.md) has 11 to 31 toothed leaflets on a leaf, and its crimson, hairy fruit stands in dense, upright clusters at the branch tips. Poison sumac has 7 to 13 leaflets with smooth edges, and its smooth, whitish fruit hangs in loose clusters.

[Smooth sumac](https://bluewhaletrees.com/species/smooth-sumac/index.html.md)'s leaflets are sharply toothed, and its scarlet, hairy fruit sits in dense, upright clusters. It grows on dry, rocky hillsides, prairies and open woods, where poison sumac keeps to the wet soil of swamps and bogs.

[Winged sumac](https://bluewhaletrees.com/species/winged-sumac/index.html.md), also called shining sumac, has leaflets with smooth edges too. But the stalk between its leaflets is winged, its fruit is red and hairy, and it does not tolerate wet sites.

A young ash, [white ash](https://bluewhaletrees.com/species/white-ash/index.html.md) among them, carries leaves of several leaflets much like poison sumac's. But ash leaves grow in opposite pairs along the stem, while poison sumac's alternate, and ash fruit is a winged seed.

Our article on [poison ivy and the native plants that look like it](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/poison-ivy-and-its-native-look-alikes/index.html.md) sets them side by side.

## Handling

Every part of poison sumac carries urushiol, the oil of poison ivy, and touching any of it gives most people a red, itching rash with blisters and swelling. The oil clings to tools, gloves and clothing and stays active on them for months, and sometimes for years, until washed off. Never burn it, since breathing the smoke can inflame the lungs and fill them with fluid, which can be fatal. Wear long sleeves, long pants, boots and gloves near it. After contact, wash your skin, clothing and tools with soap and water, and wash a pet that brushed against it.

## Read from

Its figures come from the Woody Plant Seed Manual, the USDA PLANTS Database, NC State Extension, Virginia Tech's dendrology site, the Morton Arboretum, the Wildflower Center, Go Botany, Minnesota Wildflowers, the US Food and Drug Administration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.