Cotinus
Smoke Tree
Anacardiaceae
Deciduous, Shrubs, Trees
Unusual and colorful shrub-trees creating broad, urn-shaped mass usually as wide as high. Naturally multistemmed, but can be trained to a single trunk. Common name derived from dramatic puffs of “smoke“ from fading flowers: as the tiny greenish blooms wither, they send out elongated stalks clothed in a profusion of fuzzy lavender-pink hairs.
Plants are at their best under stress in poor or rocky soil. In cultivated gardens, give them fast drainage and avoid overly wet conditions. Resistant to oak root fungus.
Native from southern Europe to central China. Typically 12–15 ft. high and wide, though it may eventually reach 25 ft. The roundish,1 1/2 –3-in. leaves are bluish green in the species, but purple-leafed types are more commonly grown.
'Grace'Hybrid between Cotinus coggygria and Cotinus obovatus. To 15 ft. tall and wide, with blue-green foliage shaded purple; turns orange and purple-red in fall. Large deep pink puffs.
Deschampsia cespitosa vivipara
This grows 1 to 2 ft. tall, 2 ft. wide. The plant produces plantlets instead of seeds; these droop to ...
Ampelopsis brevipedunculata
From Asia. Rampant woody vine climbs 20 to 30 ft. by stem tendrils. Large, handsome, three-lobed, 2 1/...
Deschampsia
Grown for their graceful clumps of arching foliage and airy clouds of flowers. Although they grow over...
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