Cotoneaster

All species of Cotoneaster are native to temperate Eurasia and belong to the Rosaceae family. They are bushes, rarely trees, widely used and appreciated for their ease of cultivation. They can be deciduous or evergreen, prostrate or erect, trimmed neatly in well-maintained hedges, bushy and inhabited by birds in hedgerows. There is a wide choice for all gardens, in all types of terrain and in all exposures. All are undemanding and easy to grow, producing a profusion of flowers, berries, or highly decorative foliage in autumn. Low-growing species, such as Cotoneaster dammeri 'Coral Beauty', evergreen and completely prostrate, covered in bright orange berries, are essential for rockeries or for covering slopes. Cotoneaster apiculatus is out of the ordinary, its branches and stems emit a cherry or maraschino scent when cut, it is of medium size (90cm (35in)), deciduous, and becomes fiery at the end of the season. Cotoneaster franchetti needs no introduction, covered in white-pink flowers and then salmon berries on a height of 3m (10ft), beautiful in all climates and soils. Hot and dry summers will not make Cotoneaster lacteus disappear, a large evergreen, which even in the shade of tall trees displays its dense bunches of vermilion berries. All Cotoneasters do well in the sun, in moderately fertile, well-drained soil, but should be regularly inspected as many are susceptible to bacterial fire blight, a disease without a remedy.