Smokebush 'Golden Spirit'
Cotinus coggygria 'Ancot' (Golden Spirit) · Anacardiaceae
Rounded leaves of bright lime gold that do not scorch in sun, turning coral, orange and red in autumn.
- Size
- 8 ft tall, 6½ ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun
- Flowers
- Mid June to mid July
- Pets
- Toxic to people
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around smokebush 'Golden Spirit'
The planner designed this bed around smokebush 'Golden Spirit' when this page was made: a 22 × 10 ft (6.7 × 3.0 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why smokebush 'Golden Spirit' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Smokebush 'Golden Spirit' × 1, pink
- 2 Verbena 'Homestead Purple' × 4, purple
- 3 Winter heath × 8, white
- 4 Indian grass 'Sioux Blue' × 3, tan
- 5 Italian bugloss 'Dropmore' × 8, blue
- 6 Southernwood × 3, grey-green leaves
- 7 Beardtongue 'Husker Red' × 5, white
- 8 Purple milkweed × 8, purple
- 9 Black-eyed Susan × 3, yellow
- 10 Wild strawberry × 8, white
- 11 Eastern bee balm × 5, pink
- 12 Grecian windflower × 17, blue
- 13 Hyacinth × 19, blue
Why this plant
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So do winter heath and Indian grass 'Sioux Blue'.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 8 ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to Italian bugloss 'Dropmore' (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for five weeks. From mid June to mid July.
- Fills no gap. Every week it is in flower, at least three other kinds are too. It thickens a season that is already full.
Planned as an English border: 14 of the 14 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The most in flower at one time is 6 kinds, from early June. Heights step up from about 12 in at the front to 4½ ft at the back.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 3 Good, 1 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where smokebush 'Golden Spirit' goes in a border
At 8 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is super tall (over 6½ ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
The gold counterpart of the purple smokebush. Planted together, each makes the other stronger. It is slower and smaller than the purple kinds.
- Gold foliage in full sun
- Contrast with purple shrubs
- Autumn colour
What to plant with smokebush 'Golden Spirit'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Smokebush 'Royal Purple': in flower together for five weeks, from mid June.
- Ninebark 'Diabolo': in flower together for two weeks, from mid June.
- Weigela 'Wine & Roses': in flower together for two weeks, from mid June; low enough (4½ ft) to stand in front of it.
Questions about smokebush 'Golden Spirit'
Does smokebush 'Golden Spirit' need sun or shade?
Smokebush 'Golden Spirit' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and little watering once settled. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does smokebush 'Golden Spirit' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 8. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does smokebush 'Golden Spirit' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid June to mid July. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 5 | Mid June to mid July |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Mid June to mid July |
| Zone 7 | Early June to early July |
| Zone 8 | Early June to early July |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should smokebush 'Golden Spirit' be planted?
6 ft (180 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 6½ ft (200 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 8 ft (250 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many smokebush 'Golden Spirit' plants do I need?
Usually one. At 6 ft (180 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 6 ft apart: two plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is smokebush 'Golden Spirit' poisonous?
Yes: mild toxicity to people. The sap can irritate skin and eyes.
Rated from NC State Extension. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Is there a native plant like smokebush 'Golden Spirit'?
Smokebush 'Golden Spirit' comes from S. Central Europe to China. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Virginia rose: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 3½ ft shorter, 24 in narrower.
- American beautyberry: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 2½ ft shorter, 12 in narrower.
- Carolina allspice: the same job in a bed; 8 in wider, flowers early May to late June.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat smokebush 'Golden Spirit'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after smokebush 'Golden Spirit'?
Smokebush 'Golden Spirit' is over by mid July. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Hollyhock: from early July to late August, 6 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Hardy hibiscus: from late July to mid September, 5 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Panicle hydrangea 'Vanilla Strawberry': from mid July to early October, 6½ ft tall.
What does smokebush 'Golden Spirit' look like in winter?
Smokebush 'Golden Spirit' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is smokebush 'Golden Spirit' good for bees and butterflies?
Smokebush 'Golden Spirit' is visited by butterflies.
More Cotinus
- Smokebush 'Grace' Cotinus 'Grace'
- Smokebush 'Royal Purple' Cotinus coggygria 'Royal Purple'
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 8 ft (250 cm) tall, 6½ ft (200 cm) wide
- Plant
- 6 ft (180 cm) apart
- Height class
- Super tall (over 6½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Mid June to mid July; feathery plumes; pink, cream
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; chartreuse
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Anacardiaceae
- Comes from
- S. Central Europe to China
- Attracts
- Butterflies
- Stands up to
- Deer, drought
Checked against NC State Extension and VASCAN (plants of Canada). Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.