The shake (Cotinus coggygria) is a shrub belonging to the family of Anacardiaceae. With its bright colors and the light shapes of the vegetation it is a plant that certainly does not go unnoticed, both when we meet it spontaneously, and cultivated in gardens. This plant, due to its beauty and uniqueness, has earned over time many bizarre names such as fog tree And wig shaft.
The scotano is perfect to be placed in the garden as an ornamental shrub. Being particularly rustic, a few cultivation tricks are enough to have great satisfaction.
Description of the scotano
The Cotinus coggygria it is a deciduous shrub that develops with a bushy crown. It does not reach large dimensions, at most 5 m in height. It has very robust roots that allow it to adapt to the most difficult soils, such as rocky slopes.
The bark of the older stems is rough, slightly cracked, brownish in color with lighter spots.
The branches have a prostrate-ascending bearing and are very thin. The younger ones are very particular, initially greenish, then brownish red in autumn.
Leaves
The leaves of the scotano are simple, with the entire margin, oval-elliptical in shape, glabrous both on the upper and lower side. They have a petiole, maximum 7 cm long. They show clearly visible ribs, but the most original feature is the color. In fact, the leaves are initially green, then turn yellow, turning orange, until they become red-carmine in the middle of autumn.
These bright colors, visible even in the young branches, create a beautiful scenic effect.
Flowers
The flowers of Cotinus coggygria they are hermaphroditic or unisexual, have greenish yellow petals which fall prematurely and are gathered in a panicle inflorescence with filiform, branched and fluffy peduncles. The flowering of the red scotano occurs between May and June.
Fruits
The fruits of the scotano are small oval red brown and shiny drupes, very beautiful to look at, but poisonous. In autumn they remain suspended from the fruiting peduncles covered with hair, this gives the whole shrub a feathery appearance that has well deserved the name of the tree of fog.
Cotinus coggygria Royal Purple variety
The scotano is a plant that has always been appreciated by gardeners who over time have created special varieties to bring out some characteristics of the type species. Very famous is the cotinus Royal Purple which develops a vegetation tending to dark purple, creating splendid spots of color in the garden.
Natural habitat of the scotanum
The Cotinus coggygria in the wild it is present mainly in the central-northern regions, in the south it is cultivated. It grows in bushes, in cliffs, preferably on limestone soils where it creates bushy spots. We find it from sea level up to 1,000 m of altitude.
It associates with other tree and shrub species, such as the hackberrythe oak, the hornbeam, theorniellothe privetthe terebinth, etc.
How to grow the mist tree in the garden
The scotano is an extremely rustic shrub, tolerates cold well, does not fear dry heat, adapts well to any type of soil. In the garden it is advisable to plant the fog tree with a sunny and also ventilated exposure. In this way the colors of the vegetation will be more intense. The cultivation land it should be well drained and not too compact, to be improved to the limit by amending the soil of the sand.
Multiplication
The scotan can reproduce from seed, by division of the basal suckers, by cutting semi-woody late summer. The simplest system is undoubtedly the second. In autumn it is sufficient to pry a sucker with a portion of root with the hoe and plant it in a pot or directly in the garden. The spring recovery has excellent success rates.
Transplant and fertilization
Scotan plants can be found for sale in specialized nurseries. The most propitious time for transplantation in the open ground it is autumn, so as to give the roots time to free themselves. The fog tree is spread out more in width than in height, so leave enough free space around it.
In the hole where the young plant is planted, organic fertilizer is added, for example home compost orearthworm humus, in order to provide the basic organic fertilization. Every year, in early spring, more organic matter can be added by hoeing around the shrub’s collar.
Irrigation
Watering of scotane plants is only necessary during the first year after planting. Once the root system has deepened, water supplies must be limited to emergency wetting during long periods of drought.
Pruning of the scotano
The shrubs of Cotinus coggygria you can let them grow freely, intervening with pruning only to remove damaged parts of the vegetation and thin out the suckers. However, there are those who prefer to breed plants with a more compact shape. In this case, back cuts are made on the vegetative apexes at the end of winter. In the spring we will have an explosion of vegetation, but a smaller flowering by virtue of the cuts.
Parasites of the scotanum
The scotano is a rustic plant that does not suffer from the attack of parasites, also because it does not produce palatable fruits. On the vegetation pay attention only to the eventual presence of cochineal.
Traditional uses of the scotano
In ancient times the scotano was appreciated and used in the tanning of leathers, thanks also to the abundant presence of tannins. The parts used were the leaves, the young branches and the bark, which were dried and reduced to dyeing powder.
Start a new Thread