Habitat

• native to eastern United States
• hardy to zone 4

Habit and Form

• a deciduous tree
• 20' to 30' tall
• equal spread
• dense in youth
• open, irregular crown
• crooked, spreading branches
• medium texture
• moderate growth rate

Summer Foliage

• alternate leaf arrangement
• deciduous leaves
• odd-pinnately compound leaves
• 6" to 12" long
• 9 to 12 leaflets
• ovate leaflet shape
• leaflets up to 4" long
• predominately entire leaf margins, some serrations towards leaf tip
• pubescent underside
• winged, pubescent rachis
• dark green leaf color

Autumn Foliage

• red fall color
• showy

Flowers

• dioecious
• greenish-yellow flowers
• blooms in July
• borne in terminal panicles, 4" to 8" long and half as wide

Fruit

• hairy, red drupe
• matures in September
• borne in terminal panicles
• showy

Bark

• reddish stems

Culture

• good in dry, rocky areas
• full sun to mostly shade
• prefers acidic, well-drained soil
• soil adaptable
• suckers

Landscape Use

• massing
• woods edge
• naturalistic areas
• bank covers
• for fruiting effect

Liabilities

• leaf spot
• rusts
• aphids
• mites
• scale
• suckers

ID Features

• odd-pinnately compound leaves
• pubescent reddish-brown buds
• u-shaped leaf scar

Propagation

• by seed
• by cuttings

Cultivars/Varieties

Several dwarf forms of this large, suckering shrub are known. 'Creel's Quintet' reaches 8' to 10' tall with a spreading, suckering habit. It is a female fruiting clone with good red fall color. Several other cultivars, including colored-leaf forms, may be on the horizon in the near future.