8 Years Ago

Need Help Trying To Identify Small Tree Or Shrub

Can you help me identify this tree or shrub? In the summer, the flowers are dark and tightly clustered in a cone shape, and you can see that then they turn into very small berries in a cluster. It is taller than a normal shrub, but smaller than a normal tree - right now it's about 10 feet. It grows at the edge of a light patch of woods. I'm in the upstate of South Carolina, where the mountains begin. I've looked in my reference books and did a reverse search on Google, but it kept giving me Japanese Maple, which I have in another spot, so I know that it's not that (and Japanese Maples do not have these berry clusters)

Thanks!
Rebecca

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Vic Eberly

8 Years Ago

It appears to be a sumac, as far as I can tell from the photo..

Kathy K McClellan

8 Years Ago

Rebecca,

At first sight it looks like a sumac to me. Try Googling Sumac and see if you find something similar. It may be in the same family.

Kathy K. McClellan
http://keppenart.com

Gregory Scott

8 Years Ago

That's Sumac. (not poison sumac, just sumac).
The maroon color seeds are fuzzy, and can be used to brew a nice lemony flavored tea.
Proceed carefully, just in case I'm mistaken.
Better to confirm the ID independently than to risk. These are very common along rural roads, but avoid those, as spraying with herbicides is common there.
They are one of the first things to make a nice red color in autumn.

Bellesouth Studio

8 Years Ago

Thank you! It is indeed a sumac, and Gregory, it is in a patch of woods behind our home, so it hasn't been sprayed with anything. I agree, it's a lovely autumn color.

I'll close this now, since you set me on the right path.

Rebecca

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