Cultivation Techniques and Management Points for Staghorn Sumac

Staghorn sumac, also known as deerhorn sumac, torch sumac, Canadian sumac and so on, is a deciduous small tree of the genus Rhus in the family Anacardiaceae. Its fruit clusters are bright red, with flattened spherical fruits covered in red bristles, densely clustered into a torch-like shape. It is cultivated more extensively in the provinces (regions) north of the Yellow River basin, mainly used for barren hill greening and also as a landscape forest tree species for saline-alkali wasteland. Let us take a look at the cultivation techniques for staghorn sumac below!

Growth Habits of Staghorn Sumac

Staghorn sumac is native to Europe and America, and often grows on open sandy or gravelly soil. It is light-loving, cold-resistant, highly adaptable to soil, drought-tolerant and barren-tolerant, waterlogging-tolerant, and salt-alkali-tolerant. Its root system is well developed with strong suckering ability, and it can sprout 30 to 50 suckering shoots within four years. It is shallow-rooted, fast-growing, and short-lived. Its rapid reproduction rate is unmatched by many greening tree species, possessing unique excellent characteristics as well as serious potential hazards.

Propagation Methods for Staghorn Sumac

1. Seed propagation: Staghorn sumac seeds are relatively small with a hard seed coat, and the exterior is covered with red prickly hairs. Before sowing, rub with alkaline water to remove the red fuzz on the seed coat exterior and the waxiness on the seed coat. Then soak in 85°C hot water for 5 minutes, remove and mix with wet sand for burial, place indoors at 20°C for germination, and sprinkle an appropriate amount of water depending on evaporation conditions. When buds appear after 20 days, sowing can begin. The sowing rate is 7 to 10 jin per mu, with a row spacing of 35 cm. After 20 days, seedlings basically emerge completely. In the same year, seedling height reaches 80 cm, and ground diameter is 1 to 1.5 cm.

2. Root cutting propagation: Staghorn sumac has many lateral roots that extend horizontally. Each year when seedlings are lifted from the nursery, select lateral roots with a thickness of 1 cm or more and cut them into 20 cm long root segments. According to the polarity of the roots, with the top facing upward and the stem end facing downward, at a plant spacing of 40×30 cm, insert them vertically into the prepared nursery bed. After insertion, cover the top of the root segments with 2 to 4 cm of thin soil, and frequently spray water to keep moist. Generally, adventitious buds sprout first, breaking through the soil to grow new shoots, and then roots form and the plant survives. In the same year, seedling height reaches over 1 m.

3. Root sucker propagation: Around staghorn sumac that is more than two years old, many root sucker seedlings often sprout. These can be retained according to row spacing, taking care to remove root suckers and excess lateral branches, and cultivate them into strong seedlings with good tree form. In the same year, seedling height can reach 1.5 to 2 m. After propagation, they can be transplanted in mid-March of the second year.

Cultivation Techniques for Staghorn Sumac

1. Water and fertilizer management: After staghorn sumac seedlings emerge, water once every 10 days, and after 1 month, water once every half month. Generally, topdress 2 times, mainly with urea, at 5 to 7.5 kg per mu, applied together with watering. Staghorn sumac seedlings in the same year are relatively tender and prone to frost damage in winter. From the end of July onward, rub the seedlings and stop watering, fertilizing and loosening the soil. For excessively vigorous branches and leaves, beat off a portion to promote lignification.

2. Thinning and replanting: For staghorn sumac, when seedlings are about 3 cm tall in April to May (3 to 4 true leaves), carry out thinning and replanting, doing so 2 to 3 times. When seedlings are 10 cm tall, final thinning is done, with a plant and row spacing of 30×30 cm.

3. Loosening soil and weeding: After seedlings emerge completely, based on soil compaction and weed conditions, loosen soil and weed once every 10 to 15 days, stopping at the end of July. Staghorn sumac has few pests and diseases; pay attention to timely control.

4. Timely transplanting: Transplanting of staghorn sumac should be carried out after leaf fall in late autumn until before bud break in early spring of the following year. When planting, require the seedling to be upright and the roots spread out. After planting, large seedlings should have support stakes erected. For afforestation on dry and barren mountain land, truncation planting is needed, cutting flat at 18 to 20 cm above the ground surface. After lifting seedlings, cut off overly long main and lateral roots, retaining 25 cm in length, which makes survival easier.

Pruning and Shaping of Staghorn Sumac

1. Shrub form: For pruning shrub-form staghorn sumac, the main principle is to maintain tree transparency. During cultivation and maintenance, promptly thin out miscellaneous branches, dry branches, overly dense branches and drooping branches, and also promptly cut off surrounding root sucker seedlings.

2. Tree form

① Select seedlings with robust growth and strong trunk dominance, thin out all their lateral branches, retaining only the main trunk. In late autumn, shorten the main trunk. The following year, select a robust new branch below the cut as the trunk extension leader, and thin out all other new branches.

② During growth, promptly thin out lateral branches on the trunk extension leader. In late autumn, shorten the main trunk again according to the method of the previous year. The following spring, select and retain strong branches as the trunk extension leader according to the method of the second year.

③ When the main trunk reaches a certain height, begin to cultivate main branches. The method is to shorten the branch tips, then select and retain three or four robust, evenly distributed branches as main branches. After the main branches grow to a certain length, pinch them to promote lateral branches.

④ In late autumn, shorten the lateral branches to promote second-order lateral branches. In this way, the basic tree form is formed. In subsequent maintenance, simply promptly prune miscellaneous branches, dry branches, drooping branches and dry branches.