| Author | Content |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
 May 6, 2010 4:22 PM Post #7770335
| This plant is a volunteer in my yard in Phoenix (elev. 1100 ft.) around the base of a cactus I planted 6 years ago.
The seed probably was already in the potting soil, and who knows where the soil came from.
I've done some searching through my Native Plants of Arizona book to find it, but it dosen't seem to match any of the seven Rhus species listed in AZ. The closest one to what I have is Rhus glabra but the leaflets on R. glabra are ridged and toothed, mine aren't. http://biology.missouristate.edu/Herbarium/Plants of the Int...
Another close match is Toxicodendron vernix (Poison sumac) which the USDA Plantsdatabase website has listed in AZ. The main difference I see is that T. vernix does not have near as many leaflettes as mine.
http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=tove_005_avp...
http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=tove_006_avp...
Which Rhus is it?
Xeno.
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
May 6, 2010 4:28 PM Post #7770348
| another view 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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foxy1
Burleson, TX (Zone 7b)
May 6, 2010 4:34 PM Post #7770362
| Would like to know. This came up wild in my garden this spring. I (perhaps stupidly) just thought it looked like a fern and said I would enjoy it for a while.
The grandkids are coming this weekend so if it is a problem I surely would like to know.
Thanks to you all...
Karen |
ecrane3
Dublin, CA (Zone 9a)
May 6, 2010 6:11 PM Post #7770563
| When I look at the USDA distribution map for T. vernix I don't see it in AZ http://plants.usda.gov/java/nameSearch?keywordquery=toxicode... , and not even in any of the states directly around AZ. The only Toxicodendron species it lists in AZ are eastern & western poison ivy, neither of which are your plant http://plants.usda.gov/java/stateSearch?searchTxt=toxicodend... If you planted the cactus 6 yrs ago I think it's more likely it's a seed of something that occurs in your area and wandered in via wind, bird, etc, vs something from out of state that came in with the potting mix all those years ago (unless the mystery plant has also been around for a number of years?)
foxy1--If you're worried about your plant, I'd recommend starting your own thread and posting some pictures of it. There are a number of different Rhus species and other close relatives that are going to look very similar to the casual observer, so I wouldn't assume that your plant is the same exact one as Xenomorf's unless the experts here get a look at a picture and tell you exactly what you have. |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
May 6, 2010 6:30 PM Post #7770606
| I think the mystery plant has been around for several years because it has a 2-3 foot bottom stem on it.
It also may have taken this long to germinate. Or, it could have been blown in, either way... |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
May 7, 2010 1:48 PM Post #7772938
| I've searched every Rhus in all the states of the lower half of the USA and in Mexico, and I think I'll go with Rhus glabra, which seems to be the nearest match and the most wide spread, unless someone else thinks they have a closer match.
Xeno. |
melody
Benton, KY (Zone 7a)
 May 7, 2010 2:18 PM Post #7773011
| I agree with Rhus glabra, and it might be a hybrid. I've been told that some Rhus will cross with each other. |
Dragonfly46310
De Motte, IN
July 31, 2012 8:13 AM Post #9224690
| It looks like I have the same plant in my yard. I'm concerned it's toxic or even Poison sumac?? I have dogs and I don't want to take a chance..I live in northeast Indiana in zone 5. I would love to know what this plant really is. I've touched it and I have not gotten rashes if that even helps.. |
ecrane3
Dublin, CA (Zone 9a)
July 31, 2012 12:16 PM Post #9224967
| I would suggest you start a new thread and post some pictures of your plant. Without seeing pictures of your actual plant, nobody can tell you for sure what yours is or isn't. |
PiedmontGuy
Charlotte, NC (Zone 8a)
July 31, 2012 1:45 PM Post #9225097
| Wait a minute here folks! Are we *sure* this is a Rhus glabra and not a baby Soapberry?
Clues from the pictures:
1) Rhus is odd-compound vs Sapindus (often) even-compound leaves
2) Rhus glabra has serrate leaf margins vs Sapindus smooth leaf margins
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nel5397
Groveland, FL
July 31, 2012 6:02 PM Post #9225405
| could be an ailanthus. do the leaves stink when crushed? |
shorthog
Barling, AR (Zone 7b)
July 31, 2012 8:46 PM Post #9225574
| The original thread was May 2010. Folks are answering or noting it now, July 2012.. Xenomorf, who raised the original question, apparently placed these two pics in issue under Rhus glabra in DG plant profile. They should bre removed since it is not smooth sumac and only causes confusion for identification of Rhus glabra. |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
August 1, 2012 1:31 AM Post #9225646
| Once we have a firm identification here, I will submit a report to have them moved over to the appropriate page.
I'll see if the leaves are odoriferous tomorrow in the daylight. |
ViburnumValley
Scott County, KY (Zone 5b)
August 1, 2012 10:29 AM Post #9226011
| Take some images of the bare stem, and some closeups of where the compound leaves attach to the woody stem.
Has it ever flowered/fruited for you? That would definitely separate the sumacs from the herd... |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
August 1, 2012 11:26 AM Post #9226076
| Here ya go! 
Click an image for an enlarged view.
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PiedmontGuy
Charlotte, NC (Zone 8a)
August 1, 2012 1:37 PM Post #9226204
| nel5397 also had a good question -- how do the leaves smell when crushed?
If stinky, Ailanthus.
If it smells citrus-y, then you've got something in the Rutaceae like a Zanthoxylum.
No flowers, no fruits, not a lot to go on.
Now, I'll bet there is a parent tree somewhere in your neighborhood that your seedling came from. If you can find it, and it has flowers/fruit, then you've got your answer. |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
August 1, 2012 2:48 PM Post #9226266
| It has a citrus aroma. |
PiedmontGuy
Charlotte, NC (Zone 8a)
August 1, 2012 4:14 PM Post #9226331
| Rutaceae! |
shorthog
Barling, AR (Zone 7b)
August 2, 2012 8:15 AM Post #9226999
| I love this thread. a real mystery plant. Xeno, thanks for stimulting the gray matter with this one. Since it has even compond leaves with 16-18 non serrated leaflets, my quess is western soapberry. |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
August 2, 2012 10:17 AM Post #9227117
| I going to go with the Western Soapberry (Sapindus saponaria var. drummondii). It is native to AZ, And it looks like these photos:
http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=sasad_005_ahp...
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/256626/
Thanks to all.
Xeno. |
PiedmontGuy
Charlotte, NC (Zone 8a)
August 2, 2012 1:42 PM Post #9227324
| I know I was the one who suggested Soapberry two days ago, but that was before Xeno mentioned what he called a "citrus aroma" to the leaves.
Soapberry leaves don't have much smell, so something that looks like almost exactly like soapberry but has a citrus smell...what could it be?
The citrus family is obvious, but has very few species in Arizona. So what else looks like soapberry but has foliage with strong smell?
Pistacia chinensis (Chinese Pistachio)
Very aromatic foliage. And a close relative of Sumac, which was what it looked like in the first place. Non-native but known to escape in the southwest.
Check it out:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/134027/
and here
http://www.hsu.edu/interior2.aspx?id=11365 |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
August 2, 2012 2:00 PM Post #9227342
| Pistacia chinensis has the aromatic leaves. It also has the reddish center stem of the leaflettes like mine:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/52386/
The first photo in this link looks darn near identical to mine.
http://www.hsu.edu/interior2.aspx?id=11365
I'd say it's a closer match than Western Soapberry.
The seed is growing out from the base of a cactus I bought at WM gardening center, which the soil could been carrying the seed from another state. |
ViburnumValley
Scott County, KY (Zone 5b)
August 2, 2012 3:06 PM Post #9227405
| Look at the leaf scars - that "mark" that is left on the stem when a leaf is removed.
This is often a very distinct characteristic, which should certainly separate such different plants as Pistacia chinensis and Sapindus saponaria var. drummondii. |
PiedmontGuy
Charlotte, NC (Zone 8a)
August 2, 2012 3:34 PM Post #9227438
| The nose knows!
(Or look for terminal buds on the twigs--Pistachio has them, soapberry, not so much) |
ViburnumValley
Scott County, KY (Zone 5b)
August 2, 2012 6:02 PM Post #9227590
| Sure - and if at first the supposition of toxicity had been right...then the "no's" really knows. |
PiedmontGuy
Charlotte, NC (Zone 8a)
August 3, 2012 2:21 PM Post #9228515
| So are all agreed Chinese Pistachio is a match? Are we "Solved"? |
Xenomorf
Valley of the Sun, AZ (Zone 9b)
August 3, 2012 5:10 PM Post #9228673
| It looks that way. Thanks. |
