SUGAR BUSH

Sugar Bush (Rhus ovata) is a member of the Sumac Family and is closely related to Lemonade Berry and Laurel Sumac. (Poison Oak is also in the Sumac Family.) It is an evergreen shrub with glossy, green leaves, which are folded along the midrib and pointed at the tip. Many, but not all, of the leaves are serrated along the margins. The leaves are somewhat more leathery and a lighter green than those of Laurel Sumac. Sugar Bush readily hybridizes with Lemonade Berry. Sugar bush is common on dry slopes in the Coastal Sage Scrub and in the Chaparral.

Mike Kuhn