What is a smoke bush?
Smoke bush is hardy in virtually all regions of the United States from USDA Hardiness Zone 4a through 11. However, it's most prized in the colder areas where few other plants can compete with its dramatic foliage color. You'll see smoke bush described in catalogs and garden references as both a shrub and a tree.
How do you plant a smoke bush in Zone 5?
Smoke bush is hardy in virtually all regions of the United States from USDA Hardiness Zone 4a through 11. However, it's most prized in the colder areas where few other plants can compete with its dramatic foliage color. You'll see smoke bush described in catalogs and garden references as both a shrub and a tree.
What kind of soil does smoke bush like?
Smoke bush is hardy in virtually all regions of the United States from USDA Hardiness Zone 4a through 11. However, it's most prized in the colder areas where few other plants can compete with its dramatic foliage color. Cotinus Selections You'll see smoke bush described in catalogs and garden references as both a shrub and a tree.
Will a smoke bush grow into a tree?
American smoke tree (Cotinus obovatus) is native to the southern US. European smoke bush ( C. coggygria ), which comprises most ornamental varieties, is indigenous to Europe and parts of Asia. PLANTING INSTRUCTIONS
What is a purple smoke bush?
Smoke bush, Cotinus coggygria, is a deciduous shrub that's also commonly known as royal purple smoke bush, smokebush, smoke tree, and purple smoke tree. Smoke bush is often used as a garden specimen thanks to its beautiful purple-pink smokey plumes and the purple leaves found on some cultivars. Smoke bush has an upright, multi-stemmed habit.
Who is Barbara Gillette?
Barbara Gillette is a Master Gardener, Herbalist, beekeeper, and journalist with decades of experience propagating and growing fruits, vegetables, herbs, and ornamentals. Smoke bush, Cotinus coggygria, is a deciduous shrub that's also commonly known as royal purple smoke bush, smokebush, smoke tree, and purple smoke tree.
What is a smoke bush?
As the large, loose clusters of tiny greenish flower blossoms fade, the flower stalks get longer and by midsummer are covered with fuzzy purple or pink hairs. These feathery trusses look like puffs of smoke -- hence the common name smoke bush or smoke tree. Even with these showy blossoms and vibrantly colored leaves, smoke bush is an easy plant to work into the landscape because it combines so readily with other perennials.
Where is Carroll Gardens?
"This plant is definitely underused," says Alan Summers, owner of Carroll Gardens, a retail and mail-order nursery in Westminster, Maryland. "It just marches out of here. Once people see it, they take it home.".
How tall is Cotinus?
Left to its natural inclinations, it will grow into a tree. The Eurasian species, Cotinus coggygria, reaches a height of 15 feet ; C. obovatus, a native of the southeast, is even taller, reaching 25 to 30 feet.
How tall is a container plant?
The container-grown plants can be anywhere from 10 inches to 2 to 3 feet in height, depending on the age of the plant. A balled-and-burlapped plant is older and therefore larger (typically 4 to 5 feet tall), but more expensive.
What color is a velvet cloak?
coggygria available; the shades and intensity of the colors can vary somewhat depending on soil conditions and climate. ' Velvet Cloak ' has reddish purple leaves that hold their color well through the season, turning to a brilliant deep red in fall.
Why is my smoke bush wilting?
Plants can develop leaf spot, rust, powdery mildew, or verticillium wilt due to damp conditions or poorly draining soil. Pests can include leafroller or scale.
What color is fall foliage?
Fall foliage can be variable, from solid scarlet to shades of yellow, orange, purple and red. Grown especially for its attractive foliage, the larger size makes it a good choice as privacy hedging, to divide garden areas, or as a single accent. Foliage holds its deep color through summer.
What color are panicles?
The puffy spent blooms, which resemble cotton candy, can reach 12 inches long. Panicles occur in shades of cream, pink, mauve, or purple that shift in color as they age. Fall color is red, yellow, orange, purple, or coral. Fruit is insignificant.
Can smoke bush grow in clay soil?
Smoke bush can tolerate in a wide variety of conditions including lean, rocky soils. It doesn’t do well in heavy clay or poor-draining soils. Slightly acidic pH is preferable, but plants can tolerate acid or alkaline soil.
What is a smoke bush?
Smokebushes (Cotinus spp.) produce green or purple deciduous foliage and feathery flower panicles that give the plant its smoky appearance. It grows as a tree or bush in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 9. Low-maintenance smokebushes rarely suffer from pests or problems, and they thrive with little care.
How should I prune a smokebush tree?
The remaining stem will develop into the trunk. If you prefer a lower growing shrub, cut back the entire shrub to within a few inches of the ground in late winter for the first two years after planting. This helps the bush develop dense growth and multiple stems. Once the shape is established, trim out dead or damaged branches each winter, and cut back any overgrown branches to keep the plant full.
How often should I water a smokebush?
Otherwise, water the shrub approximately every 10 days when it's actively growing in spring and summer, providing enough water to keep the soil moist but not soggy. Mulching the soil with a 2 inch layer can help conserve moisture so the bush requires less frequent irrigation.
When should I cut back a tree?
For trees, cut back all main stems except for one in late winter before growth resumes. The remaining stem will develop into the trunk. If you prefer a lower growing shrub, cut back the entire shrub to within a few inches of the ground in late winter for the first two years after planting.
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How big do smoke bushes get?
You'll see four main types of smoke bush on the market. "Golden Spirit," one of the most common, actually isn't purple (the plant's mainstay shade). Also known as "Ancot," this iteration has lime green foliage in the summer and turns orange and red come fall—over time, it grows to 10 feet tall and six feet wide. "Grace" is even larger: It reaches 15 feet tall and wide, and boasts burgundy-purple foliage in the spring and summer months before transitioning to an orange-red in autumn.
How to keep a plant from drying out?
When it's time to plant, dig a hole twice the size of the root ball to give the roots plenty of space to expand—then water everything well. Keep the plant from drying out during its first growing season—remember, it must be properly established before it can begin exhibiting its drought-tolerant abilities.
What color are smoke trees?
Come fall, they turn festive shades of yellow, orange, and red. Smoke tree gets its common name from the frothy, fluffy buff-pink summertime bloom clusters.
How big does Cotinus coggygria get?
It grows 10 feet tall and 6 feet wide. Zones 5-8
How tall does Cotinus Nordine grow?
Cotinus 'Nordine' shows off burgundy-bronze leaves that go shades of red and orange in the fall. It grows 15 feet tall and wide and is a good choice for gardeners in cold climates. Zones 5-8
Cultivation
Characteristics
- Smoke bush has an upright, multi-stemmed habit. The leaves are waxy green except for those cultivars with purple leaves, and are 1 1/2 to 3 inches long, ovate in shape. They turn yellow, orange, or purplish red in fall, depending on variety. The name \"smoke bush\" derives from billowy hairs that are attached to the flower clusters and which remain in place through the summer, tur…
Preparation
- Smoke bush has a nicely contained fibrous root system and is easy to transplant. Start by root-pruning the shrub several months before you plan to move it by digging a 12-inch to 24-inch circle, 14 inches deep, around the plant's base. At transplant time, dig down around the tree 12 to 14 inches, then lever the root ball out of the ground and move the shrub to its new location.
Ecology
- Smoke bush is a large shrub, and it can work well as a background screen with early-blooming shrubs such as lilac, viburnum, or spirea in the foreground. Hydrangeas, Rudbeckia (black-eyed Susans), and Achillea (yarrow) also pair well with smoke bush. Obliquebanded leafroller, a native North American pest that feeds on a wide range of plants, can be a problem with smoke bush.
Management
- Pruning needs are minimal with smoke bush. You can prune anytime to remove damaged branches, but spring is the best time to prune in order to shape the shrub or rejuvenate it. If you wish to avoid the messy flowers, prune heavily in spring to remove the flowering wood. If you wish to encourage a tree-like growth habit, prune away all but one central leader stem, and keep pruni…
Risks
- If soils are not well drained, smoke bush is very susceptible to verticillium wilta browning of the leaves caused by the fungus Verticillium. It can also get scabs and leaf spot, a fungal condition prevalent in warmer weather. If you live in the eastern United States, watch out for stem canker.