The evergreen African sumac grows at a slow to moderate rate to 20 to 30 feet tall and wide. It naturally assumes a graceful, open, spreading, multi-stem habit, reminiscent of an olive.

African sumac is considered somewhere between mesic and xeric in its water use. It’s not a true desert tree, but it can handle both a desert landscape and non-desert as well.

So much for working from home. Sitting in my backyard and writing last week, I was seduced by a pretty tree waving at me in the breeze. It was an African sumac, and I pointed to that species in ...

African sumac is a little better, but it also has problems including leaf drop during summer heat and seedlings invading the landscape if you plant a female tree. You are much better off in the ...