This section is from the book "The Gardener's Monthly And Horticulturist V28", by Thomas Meehan. See also: Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long.
" Bless the dear old Smoke tree," says the Rural New Yorker, a sentiment every lover of good hardy shrubs will echo, who has knowledge of it. It should, however, be borne in mind, that the plant belongs to the branch of the Rhus family that is more or less dioecious, and that, unlike the human being, it is only the female that wears the beard. Seedlings therefore are not so reliable as plants grown on their own roots. There is a great variety of tints to the " Smoke," some being rosy red, and others green.
 
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