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People destroy staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) every year because they think it is poison sumac. It is not. Staghorn sumac is one of the most useful edible wild plants in North America, a free source of vitamin C that makes a tart wild lemonade and carries the same lemony flavor as the spice in za'atar. This video is a complete foraging and identification guide to staghorn sumac: how to recognize it, how to tell staghorn sumac from poison sumac (Toxicodendron vernix) in about ten seconds, and how to turn its red berry cones into sumac-ade, sumac tea, and your own homemade sumac spice.
If you forage for wild edibles, or you just want to identify the free food growing on roadsides across more than 30 states, this is the guide you have been looking for. We cover staghorn sumac identification, the red-cone rule that separates safe sumac from poison sumac, the vitamin C and malic acid that give the cones their lemonade flavor, the Native American drink early settlers called Indian lemonade, why English gardeners prized this American shrub back in the 1600s, and why staghorn sumac is one of the most antioxidant rich plants on the entire spice shelf. You will also learn exactly when to harvest sumac cones, the cold-water steeping method that keeps sumac lemonade sweet instead of bitter, and how to dry and grind sumac berries into a free spice at home.
Cooks across the Middle East dust ground sumac over hummus, grilled meats, rice, and salads for its tangy flavor and deep red color, and the staghorn sumac growing wild in American fields, roadsides, and old pastures delivers that exact flavor for nothing. From a cooling summer drink to a homemade spice rub, this forgotten shrub may be the single most useful wild plant that most people walk right past.
CHAPTERS
0:00 The tree people destroy by mistake
1:23 Poison sumac vs staghorn sumac
2:40 The 10-second identification rule
4:24 Indian lemonade and the vitamin C story
5:39 Prized in Europe, feared at home
6:22 The za'atar spice connection
7:40 The forgotten, everyday shrub
8:33 How to make sumac-ade
9:53 Go find one this season
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SOURCES
- Wang, S., and F. Zhu. "Chemical Composition and Biological Activity of Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)." Food Chemistry 237 (2017): 431-443. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2017.05.111
- Wu, T., J. L. McCallum, S. Wang, R. Liu, H. Zhu, and R. Tsao. "Evaluation of Antioxidant Activities and Chemical Characterisation of Staghorn Sumac Fruit (Rhus hirta L.)." Food Chemistry 138 (2013): 1333-1340. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2012.10.086
- Kirby, C. W., T. Wu, R. Tsao, and J. L. McCallum. "Isolation and Structural Characterization of Unusual Pyranoanthocyanins and Related Anthocyanins from Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina L.)." Phytochemistry 94 (2013): 284-293. doi:10.1016/j.phytochem.2013.06.017
- Kossah, R., H. Zhang, and W. Chen. "Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities of Chinese Sumac (Rhus typhina L.) Fruit Extract." Food Control 22, no. 1 (2011): 128-132. doi:10.1016/j.foodcont.2010.06.002
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- Olchowik, E., A. Sciepuk, S. Mavlyanov, et al. "Antioxidant Capacities of Polyphenols from Sumac (Rhus typhina L.) Leaves in Protection of Erythrocytes against Oxidative Damage." Biomedicine and Preventive Nutrition 2 (2012): 99-105.
- Nazir, et al. "Antioxidants and Antidiabetic Potential of Polyphenolic Fractions and Crude Extracts of Rhus typhina Fruit, Punica granatum L. Peel, and Terminalia catappa L. Leaves." Chemistry and Biodiversity (2025). doi:10.1002/cbdv.202500020
- Elagbar, et al. "Phytochemical Diversity and Pharmacological Properties of Rhus coriaria." Chemistry and Biodiversity 17, no. 4 (2020). doi:10.1002/cbdv.201900561
- Moerman, D. E. Native American Ethnobotany. Portland, OR: Timber Press, 1998.
- Foster, S., and J. A. Duke. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service. "Rhus typhina L. (Staghorn Sumac)." PLANTS Database.
#foraging #wildedibles #homesteading #herbalmedicine 
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