Cotoneaster frigidus ‘Cornubia’

W.J. Bean, writing in 1895 describes this small tree : ‘It bears enormous crops of brilliant red fruits and is not surpassed in that respect by any other Cotoneaster’. High praise indeed from Britain’s foremost tree man. True then, true now.

Very occasionally, you’ll see these in maturity and they are indeed a fine site – particularly in autumn and winter. They’re very shapely, creating a distinctly umbrella shape.

occasionally reaches 25ft tall by 20ft wide after 50 years or more. Any reasonably well drained soil regardless of acidity or alkalinity.

Propagated by cuttings.

Incidentally, W.J.Bean was author of the incredibly authoritative five volume ‘Trees & Shrubs hardy in the British Isles’ and often quoted on this here website.

N.B. When clipping several plants with the same tool, have a bucket containing a 5% bleach solution and swish your blades around for 30 seconds between plants to sterilise them. This will help avoid the chance of cross contamination of disease.

As with all woody plants, plant high, exposing as much of the taper at the base of the trunk as possible. Allowing soil to accumulate round the base of a tree can be fatal. Keep very well watered when first planted.

Hardiness level Green

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IF IT HAS A GREEN TRAFFIC LIGHT

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Hardy anywhere in Britain below approximately 1000ft (300m)

This is only meant as a guide. Please remember we're always on hand to give advice about plants and their frost hardiness.

Please remember that these coloured labels are only a rough guide.

General Point about Plant Hardiness: The commonly held belief that it's better to 'plant small' is perfectly true with herbaceous plants, but not necessarily true with woody plants. They need some 'wood' on them to survive severe cold - so plants of marginal hardiness in very cold areas should really be planted LARGER, rather than smaller, wherever possible.