SUMAC 
789 
stand well above the foliage. The white 
flowers yield both nectar and pollen and 
attract many more insects than do the 
green, which offer only nectar; but honey¬ 
bees visit both kinds. The sumacs may be 
Sumac, smooth (Rhus glabra). 
divided into two groups; the non-poison- 
ous sumacs and the poisonous sumacs. 
Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina). This 
species reaches a height of 10 to 25 feet, 
and has orange-colored wood and crooked 
branches, covered with soft, velvety hairs, 
resembling the horns of a stag. The clus¬ 
ters of fruit are clothed with acid crimson 
hair. The staghorn sumac grows in dry 
soil from Nova Scotia westward to Mis¬ 
souri. The flowers are visited by honey¬ 
bees in large numbers; and, as the nectar 
is unprotected, by a great company of 
other insects. The flowers appear in June 
and July. 
Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra). Upland 
sumac. Scarlet sumac. This species is an 
irregularly branched shrub, seldom more 
than 10 feet tall. It has a very wide dis¬ 
tribution, extending from Nova Scotia to 
Florida and westward to Mississippi and 
Minnesota. In Connecticut, where much 
of the surface is covered with glacial mor¬ 
aines, it is very common in hillside pas¬ 
tures, and along stone walls. The bloom¬ 
ing period lasts for about three weeks, 
from July 8 to the beginning of August. 
The flowers secrete nectar very freely on 
hot clear days, but in cloudy, foggy, or 
cool weather the flow ceases almost entirely. 
If there are “hot waves” in July strong 
colonies will bring in 20 pounds of honey 
during an ideal day, and will store from 40 
to 100 pounds each. But if there is much 
cool or rainy weather there may not be ah 
average of 20 pounds to the colony. At its 
height the flow is Very rapid and heavy. 
While the bees are busy on the bloom there 
is a very strong odor in the apiary, and 
the new honey is more or less bitter to the 
taste. Fortunately, the bitterness is only 
transient, and by winter the honey is edi¬ 
ble. 
One must eat sumac honey to appreciate 
it, says Latham. There is a richness, but 
at the same time a mildness about it, that 
will suit the most sensitive taste. Once a 
customer, always a customer, if one buys 
sumac honey. When pure the honey has a 
golden color. If properly ripened, it has 
no noticeable odor, but is very heavy, and, 
Sumac flowers and leaves (Rhus glabra). 
like apple-blossom honey, waxes instead of 
candying. It is safe to say that much of 
Connecticut would be worthless to beekeep¬ 
ers but for this plant. 
The bloom also yields a large amount of 
pollen, great loads of which the bees bring 
in during a slow flow. Even during the 
