Cotoneaster acutifolius

Peking Cotoneaster

Rosaceae

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Habitat

  • native to northwestern parts of Asia
  • hardy to zone 4, best in colder climates

Habit and Form

  • a deciduous, medium-sized shrub
  • long, spreading branches
  • 6' to 10' tal land has an equal width
  • medium texture
  • medium growth rate

Summer Foliage

  • alternate leaf arrangement
  • simple, deciduous leaves
  • ovate leaf shape
  • 1" to 2.5" long and up to 1" wide
  • dull green leaf color
  • more pubescent than C. lucidus

Autumn Foliage

  • yellow to red fall color

Flowers

  • pale pink flowers
  • small and clustered
  • blooms early June

Fruit

  • black pome fruit
  • 0.5" in diameter
  • ripen in September through October
  • can be showy

Bark

  • slender, tan bark color
  • lenticels
  • stems have a fishbone pattern

Culture

  • transplant from containers only because of sparse root system
  • prefers well-drained, loose soil
  • wind tolerant
  • pH adaptable
  • full sun to partial shade
  • prune tolerant
  • salt tolerant

Landscape Use

  • hedge
  • bank cover
  • groupings or mass
  • espalier
  • for flowers or fruit effect
  • screen

Liabilities

  • bees are attractive to flowers
  • fireblight
  • leaf spot
  • spider mites
  • scale

ID Features

  • imbricate bud, appressed with loose exposed outer scales
  • fishbone stem pattern
  • pale pink flowers
  • black, pome fruits
  • irregular growth habit
  • long spreading branches
  • alternate leaves
  • pubescence leaf

Propagation

  • by seed, stratification required
  • cuttings

Cultivars/Varieties

  • none

© Copyright Mark H. Brand, 1997-2015.

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Citation and Acknowledgements: University of Connecticut Plant Database, http://hort.uconn.edu/plants, Mark H. Brand, Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, Storrs, CT 06269-4067 USA.