Rhus glabra in Genus Rhus

Details Top

Internal ID	UUID6440443a4c9b6109841646
Scientific name	Rhus glabra
Authority	L.
First published in	Sp. Pl. : 265 (1753)

Ethnobotanical Use Top

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General Uses Top

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Common products:
Beverage flavoring and seasoning: Ripe drupes (fruits) of Rhus glabra are used to prepare a tart, acidic beverage (often sweetened) and as a flavoring ingredient in condiments, confections, and other foods. The acidity derives chiefly from malic acid; pH values around 3.0 have been reported for the fruit.

Colorants and tanning:
Natural colorants: The fruits contain anthocyanins (delphinidin derivatives, including delphinidin 3‑O‑β‑glucoside) that produce red–purple hues in acidic media. These anthocyanins are pH‑sensitive and can be used as natural colorants for foods and non-textile applications. Published analyses also note other flavonoids (e.g., quercetin glycosides) that may contribute to color in preparations.
Tanning material: The bark (and sometimes twigs) is described as rich in condensed tannins, with values reported in the low‑ to mid‑teens by weight. Historically used for vegetable tanning of light-colored leathers on a small scale; it is not a primary commercial tannin source compared with other sumacs.

Wood and fiber:
The wood is dense, ring‑porous, and pale; it is used locally for small wooden items, craftwork, and as a fuelwood. The wood’s high heat value supports domestic energy use. Fiber (bast) is generally not reported as a commercial product; stems may be used for simple tying or craft applications.

Properties relevant to use:
The fruits provide anthocyanin colorants whose hue responds to pH (stable vivid reds in acidic conditions) and malic acid that confers strong sourness. Bark/twig tannins are primarily condensed (proanthocyanidins) and can produce light brown to reddish tans in vegetable tanning. The wood’s density and combustion characteristics support fuelwood applications.

Sustainability and sourcing:
R. glabra is common in North America and can be sustainably harvested by selective cutting of shoots or coppicing while retaining the root crown. Overharvesting for tanning or fuel may deplete local stands; periodic rest periods and species regeneration are recommended.

Synonyms Top

Scientific name	Authority	First published in
Rhus arbuscula	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 184 (1906)
Rhus arguta	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 192 (1906)
Rhus aprica	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 193 (1906)
Rhus angustiarum	Lunell	Amer. Midl. Naturalist 3: 144 (1913)
Rhus asplenifolia	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 196 (1906)
Rhus atrovirens	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 182 (1906)
Rhus auriculata	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 178 (1906)
Rhus oreophila	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 177 (1906)
Rhus nitens	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 190 (1906)
Rhus petiolata	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 185 (1906)
Rhus coccinea	hort. ex Dippel	Handb. Laubholzk. 2: 367 (1892)
Rhus calophylla	Greene	Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 5: 45 (1908)
Rhus hapemanii	Lunell	Amer. Midl. Naturalist 3: 147 (1913)
Rhus ithacensis	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 178 (1906)
Rhus elegantula	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 195 (1906)
Rhus valida	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 185 (1906)
Rhus sorbifolia	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 195 (1906)
Rhus tessellata	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 191 (1906)
Rhus sanguinea	hort. ex Dippel	Handb. Laubholzk. 2: 367 (1892)
Rhus media	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 188 (1906)
Rhus laevicaulis	Torr. ex A.Gray	Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts , n.s., 4: 28 (1849)
Rhus macrothyrsa	Goodd.	Bot. Gaz. 37: 56 (1904)
Rhus ludoviciana	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 183 (1906)
Rhus longula	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 186 (1906)
Rhus pulchella	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 182 (1906)
Rhus pyramidata	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 180 (1906)
Rhus sambucina	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 190 (1906)
Rhus sandbergii	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 187 (1906)
Rhus caroliniana	Mill.	Gard. Dict. ed. 8 : n.º 4 (1768)
Rhus borealis	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 188 (1906)
Rhus glabra f. laciniata	B.L.Rob.	Rhodora 10: 35 (1908)
Rhus glabra var. laciniata	Carrière	Rev. Hort. (Paris) 1863: 7 (1863)
Rhus cismontana	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 189 (1906)
Rhus glabra var. occidentalis	Torr.	U.S. Expl. Exped., Phan. Pacific N. Amer. 17(2): 257. 1874 ; C. Wilkes Expl. Exped.
Toxicodendron glabrum	Kuntze	Revis. Gen. Pl. 1: 154. 1891 [5 Nov 1891]
Schmaltzia glabra	Small	Fl. S.E. U.S. : 729 (1903)
Rhus elegans	Aiton	Hort. Kew. 1: 366 (1789)
Rhus glabra var. cismontana	Cockerell in Daniels	Univ. Missouri Stud., Sci. Ser. : 167 (1911)
Rhus occidentalis	Blank.	Sci. Stud. Montana Coll. Agric., Bot. 1: 86 (1905)
Rhus glabra f. flavescens	(D.M.Andrews) Rehder	J. Arnold Arbor. 21: 277 (1940)
Rhus cismontana var. flavescens	D.M.Andrews	Nursery Cat. (Rockmount Nursery) 1922: 5 (1922)
Turpinia glabra	Raf.	Med. Repos. 5: 352 (1808)
Rhus glabra var. elegans	(Aiton) Engl.	Monogr. Phan. [A.DC. & C.DC.] 4: 377 (1883)
Rhus glabra f. abludens	Moldenke	Revista Sudamer. Bot. 5: 41 (1937)
Rhus elegans var. glauca	Demcker	Mitt. Deutsch. Dendrol. Ges. 1909: 325, 327 (1909)
Rhus elegans var. superba	Demcker	Mitt. Deutsch. Dendrol. Ges. 1909: 325, 327 (1909)
Rhus glabra var. borealis	Britton	Man. Fl. N. States [Britton] 601 (1901)
Rhus glabra var. coccinea	Pursh	Fl. Amer. Sept. (Pursh) 1: 204 (1813)
Rhus glabra var. dioica	DC.	Prodr. [A. P. de Candolle] 2: 67 (1825)
Rhus glabra var. hermaphrodita	DC.	Prodr. [A. P. de Candolle] 2: 67 (1825)
Rhus glabra var. sandbergii	Vasey	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 187 (1906)
Rhus albida	Greene	Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci. 8: 194 (1906)
Toxicodendron glabrum	(L.) Mill.	Gard. Dict., ed. 8. n. 3 (1768)

Common names Top

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Language	Common/alternative name
English	white sumac
English	upland sumac
English	rocky mountain sumac
English	scarlet sumac
English	smooth sumac
Arabic	السماق الناعم
Arabic	سماق أجرد
Azerbaijani	Çılpaq sumaq
Belarusian	сумах голы
chy	no'aneonó'e
Czech	Škumpa lysá
Persian	راس گلابرا
French	sumac à bois glabre
Japanese	ルスグラブラ
Russian	Сумах голый
Chinese	光叶漆
Chinese	光滑漆樹

Subspecies (abbr. subsp./ssp.) Top

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Varieties (abbr. var.) Top

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Subvarieties (abbr. subvar.) Top

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Forms (abbr. f.) Top

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Germination/Propagation Top

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Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top

Legend for the distribution data:

- Doubtful data

- Extinct

- Introduced

- Native

Northern America click to expand
- Eastern Canada
  - Ontario
  - Québec
- Mexico
  - Mexico Northeast
  - Mexico Northwest
- North-central U.S.A.
  - Illinois
  - Iowa
  - Kansas
  - Minnesota
  - Missouri
  - Nebraska
  - North Dakota
  - Oklahoma
  - South Dakota
  - Wisconsin
- Northeastern U.S.A.
  - Connecticut
  - Indiana
  - Maine
  - Massachusetts
  - Michigan
  - New Hampshire
  - New Jersey
  - New York
  - Ohio
  - Pennsylvania
  - Rhode Island
  - Vermont
  - West Virginia
- Northwestern U.S.A.
  - Colorado
  - Idaho
  - Montana
  - Oregon
  - Washington
  - Wyoming
- South-central U.S.A.
  - New Mexico
  - Texas
- Southeastern U.S.A.
  - Alabama
  - Arkansas
  - Delaware
  - District Of Columbia
  - Florida
  - Georgia
  - Kentucky
  - Louisiana
  - Maryland
  - Mississippi
  - North Carolina
  - South Carolina
  - Tennessee
  - Virginia
- Southwestern U.S.A.
  - Arizona
  - California
  - Nevada
  - Utah
- Western Canada
  - Alberta
  - British Columbia
  - Manitoba
  - Saskatchewan

Links to other databases Top

Suggest others/fix!

Database	ID/link to page
World Flora Online	wfo-0001049359
UNII	XU3Z201OK4
Florida Plant Atlas	3941
Flora of Alabama	304
Canadensys	2520
USDA Plants	RHGL
UConn	430
Tropicos	1300002
INPN	117715
KEW	urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:70565-1
The Plant List	tro-1300002
Missouri Botanical Garden	275934
PaleoBotany	78912
Open Tree Of Life	598794
Observations.org	126345
NCBI Taxonomy	298662
Nature Serve	2.142191
IUCN Red List	124270038
IPNI	70565-1
iNaturalist	54764
GBIF	3190544
Freebase	/m/0c3fq_
WisFlora	4797
FEIS	plants/shrub/rhugla
EPPO	RHUGL
EOL	582254
Calflora (Californian flora)	9212
USDA GRIN	31689
Wikipedia	Rhus_glabra
KEW	urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:219794-2
IPNI	219794-2
GBIF	3661326

Genomes (via NCBI) Top

No reference genome is available on NCBI yet. We are constantly monitoring for new data.

Scientific Literature Top

Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.

Title

Authors

Publication

Released

IDs

Anti-Malassezia globosa (MYA-4889, ATCC) activity of Thai propolis from the stingless bee Geniotrigona thoracica

Konsila K, Assavalapsakul W, Phuwapraisirisan P, Chanchao C

Heliyon

16-Apr-2024

PMCID:	PMC11041017
doi:	10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e29421
PMID:	38660263

Sustainable appraisal of lipstick tree seeds (Bixa orellana)-based bixin natural orange colorant for green mordanted silk fabrics and wool yarns

Yameen M, Adeel S, Salman M, Haji A, Asghar F, Mia R, Imran M

Sci Prog

13-Apr-2024

PMCID:	PMC11024587
doi:	10.1177/00368504241242282
PMID:	38614468

Three complete chloroplast genomes from two north American Rhus species and phylogenomics of Anacardiaceae

Huang L, Xu Y, Valcárcel V, Lutz S, Wen J, Ren Z

BMC Genom Data

15-Mar-2024

PMCID:	PMC10943888
doi:	10.1186/s12863-024-01200-6
PMID:	38491489

Bio-mordants: a review

Benli H

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int

23-Feb-2024

PMCID:	PMC10948525
doi:	10.1007/s11356-024-32174-8
PMID:	38396176

The presence of wild edible plants and determinants influencing their harvest, consumption, and conservation in south eastern Bhutan

Bajgai RC, Bajgai Y, Johnson SB

PLoS One

10-Oct-2023

PMCID:	PMC10564141
doi:	10.1371/journal.pone.0285936
PMID:	37816046

The most polyphagous insect herbivore? Host plant associations of the Meadow spittlebug, Philaenus spumarius (L.)

Thompson V, Harkin C, Stewart AJ

PLoS One

04-Oct-2023

PMCID:	PMC10602594
doi:	10.1371/journal.pone.0291734
PMID:	37792900

An Inventory of Anthelmintic Plants across the Globe

Ahmed H, Kilinc SG, Celik F, Kesik HK, Simsek S, Ahmad KS, Afzal MS, Farrakh S, Safdar W, Pervaiz F, Liaqat S, Zhang J, Cao J

Pathogens

13-Jan-2023

PMCID:	PMC9866317
doi:	10.3390/pathogens12010131
PMID:	36678480

Sumac (Rhus coriaria) Extract-Loaded Polymeric Nanosheets Efficiently Protect Human Dermal Fibroblasts from Oxidative Stress

Emanet M, Okuda M, Şen Ö, Lavarello C, Petretto A, Takeoka S, Ciofani G

ACS Appl Bio Mater

25-Nov-2022

PMCID:	PMC9768808
doi:	10.1021/acsabm.2c00857
PMID:	36426992

Histochemical Evidence for Nitrogen-Transfer Endosymbiosis in Non-Photosynthetic Cells of Leaves and Inflorescence Bracts of Angiosperms

Micci A, Zhang Q, Chang X, Kingsley K, Park L, Chiaranunt P, Strickland R, Velazquez F, Lindert S, Elmore M, Vines PL, Crane S, Irizarry I, Kowalski KP, Johnston-Monje D, White JF

Biology (Basel)

07-Jun-2022

PMCID:	PMC9220352
doi:	10.3390/biology11060876
PMID:	35741397

Reinventory of the vascular plants of Mormon Island Crane Meadows after forty years of restoration, invasion, and climate change

Caven AJ, Wiese JD

Heliyon

03-Jun-2022

PMCID:	PMC9192816
doi:	10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09640
PMID:	35711997

Ecological and Morphological Differentiation Among COI Haplotype Groups in the Plant Parasitic Nematode Species Mesocriconema Xenoplax

Matczyszyn JN, Harris T, Powers K, Everhart SE, Powers TO

J Nematol

11-May-2022

PMCID:	PMC9260820
doi:	10.2478/jofnem-2022-0009
PMID:	35860518

Salivary surprise: Symmerista caterpillars anoint petioles with red saliva after clipping leaves

Dussourd DE

PLoS One

16-Mar-2022

PMCID:	PMC8926259
doi:	10.1371/journal.pone.0265490
PMID:	35294481

Comparison of Herbal Medicines Used for Women’s Menstruation Diseases in Different Areas of the World

Jiao M, Liu X, Ren Y, Wang Y, Cheng L, Liang Y, Li Y, Zhang T, Wang W, Mei Z

Front Pharmacol

04-Feb-2022

PMCID:	PMC8854496
doi:	10.3389/fphar.2021.751207
PMID:	35185533

The complete chloroplast genome of Rhus punjabensis var. sinica

Pan Y, Feng J, Lin Y, Yao H

Mitochondrial DNA B Resour

24-Jan-2022

PMCID:	PMC8788377
doi:	10.1080/23802359.2021.1925983
PMID:	35087942

Population genomics of free‐ranging Great Plains white‐tailed and mule deer reflects a long history of interspecific hybridization

Combe FJ, Jaster L, Ricketts A, Haukos D, Hope AG

Evol Appl

14-Dec-2021

PMCID:	PMC8792484
doi:	10.1111/eva.13330
PMID:	35126651

Phytochemical Profile Top

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Below are displayed the proven (via scientific papers) natural compounds!
You can also contribute to this by clicking here.

Name	PubChem ID	Canonical SMILES	MW	Found in	Proof
> Benzenoids / Benzene and substituted derivatives / Benzoic acids and derivatives / Hydroxybenzoic acid derivatives / Gallic acid and derivatives
3,5-Dihydroxy-4-methoxybenzoic acid	78016	Click to see COC1=C(C=C(C=C1O)C(=O)O)O	184.15	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(94)90102-3
> Benzenoids / Benzene and substituted derivatives / Benzoic acids and derivatives / Hydroxybenzoic acid derivatives / Gallic acid and derivatives / Gallic acids
Gallic Acid	370	Click to see	170.12	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(94)90102-3
> Benzenoids / Benzene and substituted derivatives / Benzoic acids and derivatives / Hydroxybenzoic acid derivatives / Gallic acid and derivatives / Galloyl esters
Methyl Gallate	7428	Click to see	184.15	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(94)90102-3
> Organic oxygen compounds / Organooxygen compounds / Ethers / Hemiacetals
3,4,5-Trihydroxy-4-methoxycyclohexa-1,5-diene-1-carboxylic acid	162513630	Click to see	202.16	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(94)90102-3
> Phenylpropanoids and polyketides / Flavonoids / Flavans / Catechins
Catechin	9064	Click to see	290.27	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00638416 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00633406
Epicatechin	72276	Click to see	290.27	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00638416 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00633406
> Phenylpropanoids and polyketides / Flavonoids / Flavans / Catechins / Epigallocatechins
Epigallocatechin	72277	Click to see C1C(C(OC2=CC(=CC(=C21)O)O)C3=CC(=C(C(=C3)O)O)O)O	306.27	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00633406 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00638416
Gallocatechin	65084	Click to see	306.27	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00633406
> Phenylpropanoids and polyketides / Flavonoids / Flavones / Flavonols
Fisetin	5281614	Click to see	286.24	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-8741(94)90102-3

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Rhus glabra

Table of Contents

Details Top

Ethnobotanical Use Top

General Uses Top

Synonyms Top

Common names Top

Subspecies (abbr. subsp./ssp.) Top

Varieties (abbr. var.) Top

Subvarieties (abbr. subvar.) Top

Forms (abbr. f.) Top

Germination/Propagation Top

Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top

Links to other databases Top

Genomes (via NCBI) Top

Scientific Literature Top

Phytochemical Profile Top

Gallery Top

Contributors Top

Collections Top