About WingedSumac.com
A small, grower-run seed shop sharing hand-harvested winged sumac (Rhus copallinum) from native Arkansas stands. We started this because a tough, beautiful, wildlife-feeding native deserves better than to be lumped in with poison sumac in the public imagination.
What We Do
WingedSumac.com sells seeds for winged sumac (Rhus copallinum), an underplanted native shrub of the central and eastern United States. Every order is packed by hand and ships with a free 4-page printed planting guide. Every order is also packed with the assumption that the grower on the other end has never started seed before, so we explain scarification, stratification, and timing in plain language.
Alongside the shop, we publish a small library of guides on the plant itself, its wildlife value, its edible and culinary uses, and how to grow it from seed.
Why We Exist
Two reasons.
1. Native plants are still hard to source
Most garden centers stock the same dozen non-native ornamentals. Winged sumac is a fast-growing, drought-tolerant, fall-coloring native that feeds more than twenty bird species and dozens of pollinators, and you almost cannot find it for sale. We grow and harvest seed specifically to close that gap.
2. The "sumac" name confuses people
"Sumac" makes most people think of poison sumac (Toxicodendron vernix), which is a different genus that lives in wet swamps. Winged sumac is a different plant entirely. It grows in dry uplands, has upright cone-shaped red berry clusters, and is not poisonous to touch or eat. The site exists in part to clear that confusion up.
How We Source
Our seeds are wild-harvested by hand from native winged sumac stands in Arkansas. They are not chemically treated, not hybridized, and not stratified before shipping (so you can choose the timing that fits your planting schedule).
What that means in practice
- Hand-cleaned. Berry pulp is removed by hand and the seed is separated from chaff. No chemicals, no kiln-drying.
- Tested for viability. A sample from each year's harvest is tested in our own germination trays before any seed is sold from that batch.
- Honest about wildness. Native seed germination is naturally uneven. Even with proper scarification and stratification, expect roughly 30 to 40 percent germination. We tell you this up front so you can plan your seed quantity accordingly.
- Native to your region (if you live in the eastern US). Winged sumac is native from Texas and Oklahoma east to the Atlantic, and from Florida north to Maine. If you live within that range, you are planting a regionally appropriate native.
How We Make Money
Transparency builds trust, and this is a small shop, so the answer is simple:
Direct seed sales
The 200, 500, 1,500, and 3,000-seed packs are our main revenue. Every dollar from a seed pack supports the hand-harvesting, hand-packing, and hand-shipping work behind each order.
Wholesale and restoration orders
For larger projects we offer custom volume quotes. Wholesale revenue helps us scale the wild-harvesting work each fall.
What we do not do
- We do not run paywalls or gate any of our growing guides behind an email signup.
- We do not run intrusive ads. If we ever add display ads, they will be clearly labeled, never auto-playing, and never blocking content.
- We do not sell customer information.
Who Builds the Site
WingedSumac.com is built and maintained by Lonesmith, a small workshop that designs and ships hand-built websites and tools. Lonesmith handles the code; the seed harvest, packing, and customer email is grower-direct.
Contact Us
Questions, orders, wholesale
Email [email protected]. We read every message personally and typically reply within one business day.
If your question is wholesale or restoration-scale, use the subject line "Wholesale Inquiry" and include total seed count, target planting season, and shipping destination state.
For our full contact information, see the Contact page.
