Side by side
Ninebark or smoke-tree? How to tell them apart
Physocarpus opulifolius · Cotinus coggygria
How to tell them apart – ninebark: lobed, toothed leaves and domed white flower heads; smoke-tree: untoothed, round leaves and plumes like puffs of smoke.
How do you recognise them?
- Ninebark
- Shrub with three-lobed, toothed leaves (often dark red or yellow), domed white flower heads in June and inflated, reddish fruits.
- Compared with smoke-tree: lobed, toothed leaves and domed white flower heads.
- Smoke-tree
- Shrub with round, untoothed leaves, often purplish-red, and in summer cloud-like plumes that look like a puff of smoke or a wig.
- Compared with ninebark: untoothed, round leaves and plumes like puffs of smoke.
| Ninebark | Smoke-tree | |
|---|---|---|
| Leaves | Alternate, 4–8 cm, round to oval, three-lobed and irregularly double-toothed; green, or dark purple or yellow in the garden forms. | Alternate, 4–8 cm, round to oval, untoothed and hairless, on a long stalk; green or dark purple, with fiery autumn colour. |
| Flowering | Domed heads of small, white to pale pink flowers with conspicuous stamens, in June (June). | Tiny, yellowish-green flowers in large, loose clusters in June–July (June–July). |
| Fruit | Clusters of inflated, red to brown pods in summer. | The stalks of the sterile flowers grow into long, pink to grey hairs: the ‘wig’, from July to September; among them a few small drupes. |
| Bark | Brown bark that peels in long strips and layers on older branches. | Greyish-brown; crushed twigs smell resinous. |
| Shape and height | Shrub, 2–3 m | Shrub, 3–5 m |
| Site | Sun or partial shade, any garden soil, dry to wet | Full sun, any garden soil, dry |
| Native to Belgium | No, planted | No, planted |
| Good for bees, butterflies and birds | – | – |
| Poisonous to people and pets | Not known to be poisonous | Not known to be poisonous |
| Pruning months | June–July | March |
What does it mean for your garden?
- Choose what suits your soil, your light and the space you have: see the growing conditions in the table.
Read on
- Plant profile: Ninebark
- Plant profile: Smoke-tree
- Ninebark: when and how to prune
- Smoke-tree: when and how to prune
- Identification key
Also looks like
This comparison is compiled from the Bladwijzer species pages.