“Those tiny, lively light-green leaves create such an irresistible texture on this tidy cotoneaster — discovered by the legendary plant hunter Daniel Hinkley himself! It naturally grows taller than…”
Callicarpa rubra
Use Shear Genius Cotoneaster for Garden Structure
Those tiny, lively light-green leaves create such an irresistible texture on this tidy cotoneaster — discovered by the legendary plant hunter Daniel Hinkley himself! It naturally grows taller than wide and takes to shearing like a dream, making this midsize semi-evergreen shrub a natural fit for mixed borders, foundation plantings, or a narrow hedge. Scatter a few around your garden and you'll get this gorgeous sense of structure, rhythm, and continuity through all the seasonal changes. It can even step in for boxwood (Buxus) in areas where it's hardy.
Commonly called: Shear Genius cotoneaster
Botanical name: Cotoneaster 'Monshgus'
Exposure: Full to part sun
Nothing flashy here — the flowers and fruit are pretty inconspicuous.
The leaves are itty-bitty and oval-shaped, but they pack a punch by sitting super densely on the twigs. It's considered semi-evergreen, so in milder winters it'll hang onto its foliage — a nice little bonus!
Shear Genius grows into a columnar shape, eventually reaching about five feet tall and two to three feet wide — nice and upright.
This cotoneaster is one adaptable shrub — it'll take just about any soil as long as the drainage is decent. Give it regular watering while it's settling in, but after that it only needs extra water during dry spells. Right now it's rated for USDA Zones 7 through 9, but that's on the conservative side — it originally comes from high elevations, so it might actually handle colder winters better than we think. Time and more trials will tell!
Image courtesy of Monrovia
