Just sent you a private email. Linda

"Most "invasive" plants are simply those which are good at colonizing disturbed sites, which describes most urban and suburban areas. That is, after all, their niche in nature. As a site matures into forest, the invasives generally disappear as they can't take the low sunlight or competition of a mature forest." Depends on your definition of invasive, but that statement actually somewhat contradicts the scientific definitions we are usually referring to here on Gardenweb. Here is one simplistic example of a definition I like: Invasive plant - an exotic plant that invades and displaces natives in functioning natural ecosystems. So, it's usually the invasives that are displacing the natives, not the other way around. That's why we call them invasive.

Hi i recently dug up 5 sumacs for at a friends place. I wasn't sure if i should only take the smaller ones, but ended up taking larger ones.I planted them early in the spring, before the buds got large & opened ( I think the end of april- as they leaf later that other tree's) The smallest one is approx 4 ft high, and the other 4 are 7-8 ft high. I just made sure that i got as much of the main root, and smaller of shoots as possible. Once planted i watered them every day for about 2 wks ( although one that i planted in out back yard- i never once watered after i planted it- and it even took), and the other 4 all took with no problems.I was very surprised. I had researched it for some time, checking out other garden sites etc on the web on their care, the positive's & negatives of planting them. The only draw back people advised me of that i also knoew about was the suckers you'd get. All the advise i've gotten is that they just cut them off with trimmers of the lawnmauer - and the sucker doesn't grow back.The suckers only needed to be delt with about once every year- and grow fairly close too the surface of the ground ( 6inches or so). They do need space too grow, but as long as your willing to put up with the suckers, and the care of these, sumacs do provide a nice accent too one garden.Great fall colour etc good luck

perhaps we ought to start with location.. add pix ... confirm ID ... then you state your pruning goals .. and then we can opine ... pruning requires goals.. perhaps other than.. i want to beat it back with a stick .. lol ... which you can do.. without an ID ... if you look inside the plant.. you can probably see how it was pruned previously ... not that that was necessarily a good job ... ken