08/21/2025
Poison sumac is rare to encounter in central Iowa but the edible varieties are abundant.
Best harvested after a few warm days without rain.
Poison sumac is often confused with sumacs in the Rhus genus. An easy way to differentiate between the plants is to look at the fruits. When ripe, poison sumac fruits are creamy white and hang in loose clusters. The fruits of Rhus species are red and often grow in upright, dense clusters.
Interestingly, poison sumac was formerly placed in the Rhus genus. Now it resides in the Toxicodendron genus alongside poison ivy and poison oak. All these plants are in the Anacardiaceae family — a family also containing cashew, mango, and pistachio.
A lot of people think they’ll easily encounter poison sumac on their wanderings through the woods, but this is unlikely to be the case. Poison sumac usually grows in wet environments like swamps, bogs, and lakeshores. Personally, I’ve only seen poison sumac growing in higher quality wetlands.
Like poison ivy and poison oak, poison sumac contains an oily substance called urushiol that causes an allergic skin reaction in many people. Because I’ve never touched poison sumac, I’ve never developed any reaction to the plant, but I heard it can be worse than the reaction caused by poison ivy.
