European smoketree Anacardiaceae Cotinus coggygria Scop. symbol: COCO10 Leaf: Alternate, simple, oval, entire margin, blunt-tipped, 3 to 5 inches long; blue green above, paler below, several cultivars prized for purple foliage. 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. 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. Looks like: American smoketree Additional Range Information: Cotinus coggygria is planted in the USDA hardiness zones shown above and is not known to widely escape cultivaton. External Links: USDA Plants Database Horticulture © Copyright 2016, Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, all rights reserved. Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson