Cotinus coggygria: the most beautiful varieties

Cotinus 'Dusky Maiden'

The Cotinus ‘Dusky Maiden’ is a compact and well-ramified variety, not exceeding 1.5 m in all directions at the age of 10 years. At most, it will reach between 2 and 3 m in height. This cotinus is well-suited for container cultivation and easy to adopt, even in a small garden. More ramified than other cotinus, it offers a particularly bushy silhouette. It is also distinguished by its foliage, which starts as a brownish purple at the beginning of the season, gradually turning to a violet purple and then to a purplish red in summer. This dark drapery changes colour throughout the seasons, igniting with orange to scarlet hues in autumn before falling. In summer, from June to August, it is adorned with large, “hairy” plumes transitioning from smoky pink to purplish pink. It will be particularly striking if planted alone, creating a changing spectacle by itself. However, to accompany it in a shrub border, consider a Rhus ‘Tiger Eyes’, with springtime chartreuse green foliage turning to fiery red in autumn, and spindle trees like the Euonymus japonicus ‘Happiness’® which will form a small, compact golden ball at its base. A few clumps of blue flowering hardy geraniums will look stunning alongside them.

Cotinus coggygria 'Winecraft Black®'

Among the purple cotinus, ‘Winecraft Black®’ offers a festival of crimson and warm colours all on its own! It is one of the most remarkable cultivars, both for its foliage and its flowering, which begins in May with large, vapourous purple panicles. It stands out with the changing and colourful symphony of its leaves that turn purple-violet in spring, darken to almost black under the scorching rays of the summer sun, and finally finish in red-orange in autumn. Its colours will be even more beautiful in the sun! This is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful purple bushes, which you can enjoy even if you have a small garden, as it does not exceed 1.5 m in height in all directions. With its particularly compact and rounded habit, it also finds its place in a large pot on the terrace or balcony. In regions that are not too cold, you can create a scene in a harmonious palette by placing it near an Albizia julibrissin ‘Summer Chocolate’ with its dark chocolate-purple foliage in summer. In all gardens, even the smallest, it will provide a beautiful contrasting effect with yellow foliage like that of Sambucus ‘Welsh Gold’. Its fabulous autumn colours pair perfectly with late-flowering perennials, such as the blue flowers of the large autumn Asters, for example.

Cotinus coggygria 'Royal Purple'

The ‘Royal Purple’ smoke tree is a must-have among Cotinus, as well as among shrubs with purple foliage! It is one of the most popular varieties of smoke tree. What sets it apart? Intensely purple-tinged leaves edged in pink in spring and summer, turning scarlet in autumn. Translucent, they reveal delicate orange veins. It then captivates in summer when its lovely pink, cloud-like plumes adorn it. With a grand stature (3.5 m in all directions at maturity), it will be stunning in a free-form hedge, impressive on a large bank, or regal when planted alone. Its bushy and slightly gangly silhouette creates interesting contrasts with a Juniperus scopulorum ‘Blue Arrow’, dressed entirely in blue, which rises in a narrow column towards the sky. Pair it with other shrubs that boast beautiful autumn colours, such as deciduous spindle trees. On the perennial side, some plants of ‘Lilac Beauty’ yarrow will echo the pink edging that highlights each of its leaves, as well as a few ornamental grasses like Pennisetum setaceum ‘Fireworks’, whose ribbons striped with pink, green, and red turn purple in autumn.

Cotinus coggygria 'Lilla'

Here is the reduced model of ‘Royal Purple’. The Cotinus coggygria ‘Lilla’ boasts modest dimensions of 1 m high by 75 cm wide at maturity. This makes it a small, very compact specimen, easy to grow in all small spaces, such as on a terrace or balcony in a pot. It has inherited the attire of its elder: deep purple-violaceous leaves finely edged in pink that turn red in autumn. In June, the tiny but numerous yellow-green flowers contrast beautifully against the foliage, then transform into a purplish, airy, feathery hair. Its flowering accentuates its undeniably graceful appearance. Its dark attire pairs well with glaucous or bluish foliage, such as that of a small conifer, for example, like the Blue Spruce ‘Glauca Globosa’, a charming dwarf form of the Colorado Blue Fir. You can also dress its base with a carpet of heucheras in the same purple hues (‘Velvet Night’) or, conversely, create contrasts by surrounding it with acid yellow foliage (heuchera ‘Lime Rickey’) and the blue flowers of an Agastache ‘Blue Fortune’.

Cotinus coggygria ‘Lilla’ (© Cultivaris)

Cotinus ‘Grace’

Another great classic of the purple genus! Cotinus ‘Grace’ captivates with its sumptuous foliage in warm tones. Its rounded leaves measure 5 to 8 cm in diameter. They transition from a sublime pomegranate red to an intense purple between spring and summer, finishing in purple-green in autumn before falling. All enhanced by colourful red veins, which are magnificent when light passes through them. And when, in summer, the light pink, airy flowers, resembling candy floss appear, the bush takes on a spectacular dimension and reveals its breathtaking splendour. Then, its purple stems take over, colouring the garden throughout winter. It alone provides a charming spectacle in all 4 seasons! With impressive dimensions of 5 m in all directions, this cultivar is perfect for a free hedge or as a backdrop in a border. Cotinus Grace is well-suited to coppicing. Colourful dogwoods make excellent companions with their brightly coloured stems all winter long. In spring, Euphorbia amygdaloides ‘Purpurea’ with its acid yellow flowers on purple foliage will offer striking contrasts alongside it, while at the end of summer, ‘Angelica gigas with its large dark purple umbels will be the perfect companion, echoing the same colour palette.

For further reading

• Discover our wide range of Cotinus or Smoke Tree
• Francis Peeters talks to us about Cotinus ‘Grace’ and ‘Young Lady’ as part of the programme “Gardens and Leisure” on RTBF