Illustration
Photo credits and licenses
Real photographs from naturalists and photographers worldwide, each used under its own license. Credit: Photo by Pantazi Katerina / iNaturalist (CC BY), Photo by Максим Шумских / iNaturalist (CC BY) and Photo by Максим Шумских / iNaturalist (CC BY). How photos are sourced →
Smokebush
Cotinus coggygria
Also called smoke bush and smoke tree
Smokebush blooms from June through July.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Smokebush
Plant it in full sun. It prefers low water. It is hardy in USDA zones 4–8. Expect it to reach about 12 ft tall and 12 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 5 years (a house reading).
Pets
- Not yet checked for pets.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Smokebush
Plant Smokebush in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 6, the middle of its hardy zones 4 to 8, spring means March to May and fall means August or September. Once settled, it blooms from June to July.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 6, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 6 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Smokebush get?
12 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult12 ftwideSee Smokebush in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Smokebush
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Give Smokebush about 12 ft of clear ground in every direction, measured from its center. It is one plant with room around it, not a row, and a raised bed is too small for it.
Add Smokebush to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Smokebush's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 10 published sources on October 30, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- NC State ExtensionPlant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- Chicago Botanic Gardenheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and bloom months and color
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societyheight, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- treesandshrubsonline.orgTrees and Shrubs Online (International Dendrology Society)height, hardiness zones, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and trait tags
- Oregon State UniversityLandscape Plantsheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and trait tags
- University of Illinois Extensionheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and water
- woodyplants.cals.cornell.eduCornell University Woody Plants Databaseheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and water
- brokenarrownursery.comBroken Arrow Nurseryhardiness zones and sun
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Comes in 7 varieties across 2 colors
Same genus, similar care - pick the color you are growing.
Across the group, bloom runs from May through August: American Smoketree opens first (May) and Young Lady is the last to finish (August).
Compare every variety in the Smokebush group
Every figure is the variety's own page fact. Tap a name to open it.
| Variety | Color | Blooms | Hardiness | Sun | Size (H × W) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Smoketree | Pink | May–Jun | Zones 4–8 | Full sun | 17 ft × 17 ft |
| Golden Spirit | Foliage | Jun–Jul | Zones 5–8 | Full sun | 10 ft × 8 ft |
| Grace | Foliage | Jun–Jul | Zones 4–8 | Full sun | 13 ft × 11 ft |
| Royal Purple | Foliage | Jun–Jul | Zones 4–8 | Full sun | 11 ft × 10 ft |
| Smokebushthis page | Foliage | Jun–Jul | Zones 4–8 | Full sun | 12 ft × 12 ft |
| Velvet Cloak | Foliage | Jun–Jul | Zones 5–8 | Full sun | 11 ft × 10 ft |
| Winecraft Black | Foliage | Jun–Jul | Zones 4–8 | Full sun | 5 ft × 5 ft |
| Young Lady | Foliage | Jun–Aug | Zones 4–8 | Full sun | 6 ft × 6 ft |
Good to know about Smokebush
Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note. A note reports what its source says; where that differs from a fact above, the fact above is this entry's stored value, and its mark says whether it has been checked.
Safety
Related to poison ivy; contact with the resinous sap may cause contact dermatitis, especially in people already sensitive to poison ivy. Wear gloves when pruning. per NC State
Worth knowing
The famous 'smoke' is not the flowers. It comes from fine hairs on the spent flower stalks, which turn smoky pink and hang like hazy puffs all summer. per NC State
Prune for foliage or smoke
The smoke forms on old wood. Cut back hard in late winter for vivid foliage and you lose that year's smoke; prune lightly to keep it. per NC State and University of Illinois
Cold limit is disputed
Some sources rate it hardy to zone 4, others only to zone 5. In zone 4 it is marginal: give it a sheltered spot and expect possible winter dieback. per NC State and UMass
Watch for verticillium wilt
Smoketree is very susceptible to verticillium wilt, a soilborne fungus that enters the roots and clogs the water-conducting tissue, wilting and killing whole branches. per NC State
Grown for its foliage
Many types are grown for leaf color, not flowers: deep purple 'Royal Purple' and 'Velvet Cloak', or gold 'Golden Spirit'. Full sun gives the best color. per NC State
Good fall color
Deciduous with variable but often good fall color: the species leans yellow-orange, while cultivars can turn red-purple, orange-red, gold and burgundy. per NC State
Deer resistant
NC State rates smoketree deer resistant on both the species and 'Royal Purple' pages, so browsing deer tend to leave it alone. per NC State
What pairs well with Smokebush
Good companions share its growing conditions and add something it lacks: an earlier or later bloom, a lower carpet in front, or structure through winter.
Alkali Sacaton
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late summer as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Splitbeard Bluestem
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late summer as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Goldenrod
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late summer as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Blackhawks Big Bluestem
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late summer as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Dotted Blazing Star
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late summer as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Autumn Joy Sedum
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late summer as this one finishes; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds.
Castle Rouge Blue Holly
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Ever After Ruby Reblooming Azalea
Takes full sun to part sun and low to moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
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