Cotoneaster: How To Grow And Care For Cotoneaster

Cotoneasters make useful garden shrubs and groundcover plants, with most of them growing well in sun and partial shade. They have a long season of interest, thanks to their prolific summer flowers followed by deep-red berries, which remain on the plant from autumn through most of winter. Many species have beautiful autumn foliage.

Some cotoneasters are listed as invasive in Schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act in England and Wales. The Schedule 9 cotoneaster species are: wall spray cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis), entire-leaved cotoneaster (Cotoneaster integrifolius), small-leaved cotoneaster (Cotoneaster microphyllus), Himalayan cotoneaster (Cotoneaster simonsii) and hollyberry cotoneaster (Cotoneaster bullatus). It is an offence to plant or otherwise cause to grow these species in the wild. You should stop them spreading from your garden and avoid purchasing or accepting gifts of these species.

Non-invasive cotoneasters are wildlife friendly: their flowers are a magnet for bees and the berries are eaten by birds.

How to grow cotoneasters

Most cotoneasters thrive in moist but free-draining soil in full sun or partial shade. Some require pruning after fruiting to remain in bounds. Mulch annually with well-rotted manure, compost or leaf mould.

Planting cotoneaster

Cotoneasters can be shrubs, wall shrubs or even small trees, while some are useful as groundcover plants. Choose your cotoneaster variety carefully, depending on your needs. For larger, taller specimens, you may want to plant at the back of a border or as a feature in its own right, making the most of its winter berries.

Make sure you plant your cotoneaster where you have a good view of its winter berries, perhaps from a kitchen window or near your front door. Wall shrubs should be planted against a wall where you can train it to a vertical form. Groundcover cotoneasters should be planted towards the front of a border or a bank, where you want to suppress weeds.

How to plant cotoneaster

Cotoneasters thrive in moist but well drained soil, in full sun to partial shade. The best time to plant a cotoneaster is in autumn, when the soil is still warm from summer but moist enough for the roots to establish before winter sets in.

Incorporate organic matter such as well-rotted manure or garden compost into the soil. Plant the rootball at the same depth it was in the pot, then firm with your feet and water well.

How to care for cotoneaster

Cotoneaster is fairly low maintenance. Water it well in its first year.

Pruning cotoneaster

Regular pruning of cotoneaster shrubs helps keep growth dense, with plenty of flowers and berries. Simply prune and reshape evergreen cotoneaster varieties in early spring, and deciduous cotoneasters a bit later on, just before spring growth restarts.

Cotoneasters grown as small trees will need little pruning, except to shape the canopy or remove diseased, crossing branches.

How to propagate cotoneaster

Take softwood cuttings of deciduous cotoneasters or semi-ripe cuttings of evergreen cotoneaster varieties. Use rooting hormone to increase your chances of success.

How to take softwood cuttings

Cotoneaster problems

Cotoneasters are relatively trouble free, but they can be susceptible to the fungal disease fireblight. If it's spotted, prune away and dispose of any affected growth, cutting a good distance away from the affected area, and disinfect your secateurs before moving on to prune any other plants. Continue to observe the plant closely in case of further infection.

Aphids and other insect pests are rarely a problem, and provide a good source of food for birds.

Cotoneaster varieties to grow

Cotoneaster amoenus

Beautiful cotoneaster is a densely branched evergreen shrub, with arching stems and a fairly low-growing habit. Its small, dark-green leaves are covered in fine hairs when young, giving them a silvery sheen.

White summer flowers are followed by red berries that last well into winter. Native to south-east China, the cotoneaster is hardy in all but the coldest British winters. Best grown on its own as a shrub.

Height x Spread: 1.5m x 1.5m

Cotoneaster rhytidophyllus

Cotoneaster rhytidophyllus is an evergreen cotoneaster, bearing long, pointed leaves with downy felting underneath, on arching stems. In late spring to summer it bears clusters of white flowers, followed in autumn by orange fruit that ages to red. Hardy throughout most of the British Isles, it's best grown as a shrub or small tree.

H x S: 2.5m x 2.5m

Cotoneaster conspicuus

Tibetan cotoneaster is a low-growing, evergreen shrub suitable for growing en masse beneath trees or in hard-to-grow areas – you can even plant it as a cotoneaster hedge. It has small, dark-green, glossy, oval leaves. In summer masses of tiny, white star-shaped flowers are followed by large, orange-red round berries.

H x S: 1.5m x 2.5m

Cotoneaster frigidus 'Cornubia'

Cotoneaster frigidus 'Cornubia' is one of the largest cotoneasters available, often forming an enormous bushy shrub but it can also be trained into a standard tree. It bears masses of dense clusters of white flowers in summer, followed by large, vivid-red berries in autumn and throughout winter. The Royal Horticultural Society has given it its prestigious Award of Garden Merit (AGM).

H x S: 6m x 4.5m

Frequently asked questions

Why have my cotoneaster leaves turned red-brown and the plant suddenly died?

If the leaves on your cotoneaster turn red-brown in the summer and your plant subsequently dies, it's possible it had fireblight. This bacterial disease affects some plants in the rose family, especially those that produce 'pome' fruits, such as apples and pears, and ornamental trees and shrubs like pyracantha and cotoneaster. It causes leaves to turn red-brown as if burnt by fire, and then to shrivel and die. Stems die back, cankers appear on branches and, sometimes, the whole plant dies.

There's no chemical control for fireblight. Instead, prune infected stems back to healthy wood as soon as you notice problems to avoid the bacteria spreading.

Can I move my cotoneaster?

Cotoneaster plants don’t generally transplant well. Young plants have more chance of surviving a move than older ones, so it might be worth trying to transplant a cotoneaster that is under five years old in the dormant season, between October and March, when the soil is not frozen or waterlogged. If your cotoneaster is older and has outgrown its space, it might be better to give it a hard prune rather than moving it.

If you need to move a large shrub, preparation is key. During the dormant season a year before moving your shrub, dig a 30cm-wide trench around it, following the extent of the canopy, and fill with sharp sand. Then prune lightly to remove old wood. Water thoroughly the day before moving and prepare the new planting hole. Dig up your plant with as much of the rootball as possible. Replant to the same depth and firm in with your heel. Water and mulch well, and keep well watered in dry periods for the first year. Feed in spring when your shrub begins to put on new growth.