Item Tag: Purple Smoketree

Purple Smoketree, Cotinus coggygria atropurpurea, Tree Seeds Intense Colors, Hardy, Showy Foliage, Fall Color, Fast Growth, Hedge, Cold, Heat, Drought and Urban Tolerant, Adaptable Purple Smoketree offers stunning dark purple foliage that turns red in autumn. The “smoke” is not its flowers but the colorful stalks that remain after the flowers have fallen. Purple Smoketree is a deciduous, upright, loose-spreading, multi-stemmed shrub that typically grows 10 to 15 feet tall and as wide. The purplish brown stems have a waxy bloom when young and develop thin blocky light gray bark as they grow older. The leaves are dark purple, ovate to obovate to 3 inches long. They are borne alternately on long stems and have parallel veins and rounded or notched tips. In the fall, they turn bright shades of yellow, orange, purple and red. The actual flowers are inconspicuous little yellowish green blossoms that appear in spring on branching, 6 to 8 inches long, terminal panicles. It is the long pinkish filaments on the stems of the bloom clusters that create a striking pink to purplish pink cloudlike effect through the summer. Intense color is this plant’s most outstanding feature. Smoketree is most often employed for color accent or contrast, but it can also be used as a featured specimen plant or blended with other species in a shrub border. The purple-leaved varieties can be used to form a dramatic dark backdrop for summer’s bright flowers and bright green foliage. Then, as the flowers fade in the fall, the Smokebush will take over and light up the landscape with brilliant fall color. The unique billowing cloud like appearance of the flowering shrub can be used for fantasy effects. All this drama can be possible even if all you have to offer is a dry gravelly soil where it is hard to get anything else to perform well. This species was popular in Victorian gardens and is thus suitable for many garden restoration projects. Both flowers and foliage are excellent for exotic effects in floral arrangements. Leaf: Alternate, simple, oval, entire margin, blunt-tipped, 3 to 5 inches long; dark purple above, paler below. Flower: Small, greenish yellow occurring on many finely branched, slender clusters which resemble puffs of smoke; changes color from yellowish to pink as the age; few actual flowers occur. The flowers attract bees. Fruit: Light brown, 1/8 inch long, kidney-bean shaped; few appear on the slender branched, hairy stems. Twig: Moderately stout, reddish green or with a purple tint, glaucous, turning gray-brown with age; buds small, leaf scar not lobed. Bark: Initially light gray-brown, later splitting into thin strips and becoming scaly and darker. Form: A shrub to 15 feet tall with an equal spread. Other Names: Purple Smoke Tree, European Smoketree, Smoke Bush Zone: 5 to 8 (possibly 4) Growth Rate: Fast Plant Type: Deciduous, multi-stemmed shrub Family: Anacardiaceae Native Range: Southern Europe to central China Height: 10 to 15 feet Spread: 10 to 15 feet Shape: Upright, Rounded Bloom Time: May-July Bloom Color: Yellow Sun: Full Sun Fall Color: Bright shades of yellow, orange, purple and red. Drought Tolerance: High Water: Medium Maintenance: Medium Site Requirements /Soil Tolerances: Easily grown in average, medium, well-drained soils in full sun. Tolerates wide range of soils except wet, poorly-drained ones. Prefers somewhat infertile loams, but also does well in poor, rocky soils. Good drainage is essential. Shallow fibrous root system. Culture: If bloom is not a concern, stems may be cut back hard in early spring each year to a framework to induce growth of vigorous new shoots with slightly larger than normal leaves. Such hard annual pruning will control size, but most likely at the expense of profuse flowering. Easy to transplant. Uses: Single specimen, group or mass in shrub borders or sunny areas around the home. Long-lasting summer smoke display makes this a striking accent plant. Also may be used as an informal hedge or screen (a smoke screen as it were). Can be trained as a small tree. Sowing Cotinus coggygria atropurpurea Seeds: For best results, please follow the instructions in the order provided. Scarify: Pour Hot water over seed. Soak water for 12 hours Stratify: Warm 60 Days, then Cold 90-120 days, 40 Degrees F in a Moist Medium (Not wet). Germination: Sow 1/8” Deep, Keep warm and moist (Not wet).For more information about seed pretreatment and growing trees and shrubs from seed, please download this .pdf:https://cdn.forestresearch.gov.uk/2007/08/fcpg018.pdf Germination: Seeds Packets are labeled with seed name and sowing details. Seeds have not been pretreated unless specified in the listing. Seed is not a specific Cultivar (Variety) unless specified in the listing. Due to the many factors involved in successful germination, Seller cannot be responsible for buyers growing methods or mistakes. I have provided what I believe to be a good overview on this page (which you are free to print for further reference), however, it is still recommended to check specialist literature for more details and practices specific to your climate and soil conditions to avoid mistakes in the germination and growing process. 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