Cotoneaster

1. Petals spreading, pure white. Plant (semi-) evergreen === 2

1. Petals erect, pinkish or reddish, often with white margin. Plant deciduous or evergreen === 8

2. Inflorescence 1-6(-10)-flowered. Most leaves less than 30 mm long === 3

2. Inflorescence usually > 20-flowered (rarely relatively few-flowered). Most leaves more than 30 mm long === 6

3. Nutlets usually 2 (rarely 3). Leaves usually < 15 mm long. Inflorescence 1-flowered. Stem decumbent to suberect, up to 150 cm tall === Cotoneaster integrifolius

3. Nutlets 2-5. Leaves usually > 15 mm long. Inflorescence (1-)2-6(-10)-flowered. Stem prostrate or semi-prostrate, not exceeding 60 cm === 4

4. Leaf upper surface with veins deeply impressed === C. salicifolius p.p. (cv Gnom)

4. Leaf upper surface flat or with veins shallowly impressed === 5

5. Stem strictly prostrate, less than 20 cm tall. Nutlets usually 5 (rarely 4). Leaves 15-40 mm long === C. dammeri

5. Stem semi-prostrate, 40-60 cm tall. Nutlets 2-4. Leaves 10-23 mm long === C. x suecicus

6. Leaves obtuse to rounded at apex. Nutlets always 2 === C. lacteus

6. Leaves acute at apex. Nutlets 2-5 === 7

7. Leaves narrowly elliptic, with distinctly inrolled margins. Plant evergreen. Fruit ca. 4-5 mm long, usually with 2 (rarely 3-5) nutlets === C. salicifolius p.p.

7. Leaves elliptic to narrowly obovate, with flat margins. Plant semi-evergreen. Fruit ca. 5-9 mm long with 2-3(-5) nutlets === C. xwatereri

8. Leaves (semi-) evergreen. Lower leaf surface always whitish or silvery tomentose === 9

8. Leaves deciduous. Lower leaf surface glabrous to tomentose (if tomentose, then not silvery or whitish) === 11

9. Anthers pink to purple === C. franchetii

9. Anthers white (often with pink or purplish margins) === 10

10. Leaves 37-49 mm long. Nutlets usually 3-4 (rarely 2 or 5). Fruit 9-10 mm across === C. sternianus

10. Leaves 27-40 mm long. Nutlets usually 2 (rarely 3). Fruit 8-9 mm across === C. mairei

11. Leaves tomentose on lowerside, largely or totally obscuring leaf surface === 12

11. Leaves subglabrous to sparsely pubescent, not obscuring leaf surface === 15

12. Hypanthium glabrous to sparsely pubescent. Nutlets usually 2 (rarely 3) (native) === C. integerrimus

12. Hypanthium villous to tomentose. Nutlets 2-5 === 13

13. Leaves shortly acuminate at apex. Fruits nearly sessile, not pendent. Nutlets 3-5. Inflorescence 3-7-flowered. === C. dielsianus

13. Leaves rounded to acute at apex. Fruits on distinct pedicels, more or less pendent Nutlets 2 or 3. Inflorescence 3-13-flowered. === 14

14. Fruits ca. 8-9 mm long, with 2 nutlets. Leaves ca. 21-35 mm long, deciduous by October. Petals pinkish === C. fangianus

14. Fruits ca. 10-11 mm long, often at least some with 3 stones. Leaves slightly longer, ca. 32-40 mm and persisting longer. Petals paler, usually pure white === C. zabelii

15. Stamens 10-15 === 16

15. Stamens 16-20 === 20

16. Stem erect, 150-200 cm tall. Fruit elliptic, ca. twice as long as wide === C. divaricatus

16. Stem prostrate-ascending, rarely exceeding 100 cm. Fruit ca. as long as wide or only slightly longer than wide === 17

17. Leaves with strongly undulate margins. Branchlets divaricate (not distichous, nor with a herringbone pattern). Fruit 10-13 mm across === C. nanshan

17. Leaves with flat margins (or indistinctly undulate in C. ascendens). Branchlets distichous, often with a herringbone pattern. Fruit 5-8 mm across === 18

18. Leaves nearly orbicular, apex obtuse, mucronate, 13-25 x 10-25 mm. Hypanthium glabrescent === C. hjelmqvistii

18. Leaves broadly ovate, distinctly longer than wide. Hypanthium persistently hairy === 19

19. Habit decumbent to ascending (rarely exceeding 100 cm) with distichous branchlets and a distinct herringbone pattern. Leaves ca. 5-12 x 5-9 mm. Fruits orange-red, 5-6 mm across, usually with 3 nutlets === C. horizontalis

19. Habit ascending (up to 200 cm tall) with distichous branchlets but without a distinct herringbone pattern. Leaves distinctly larger, 14-23 x 8-14 mm. Fruits dark red and larger, 7-8 mm across, usually with 2 nutlets === C. ascendens

20. Fruit black at maturity === 21

20. Fruit bright orange to orange-red at maturity === 24

21. Leaf upper surface with veins deeply impressed (bullate). Nutlets usually 5 (rarely 4) === C. moupinensis

21. Leaf upper surface flat. Nutlets usually 2 (rarely 3) === 22

22. Hypanthium tomentose. Inflorescence 3-5-flowered === C. villosulus

22. Hypanthium less densely hairy, not tomentose. Inflorescence 5-15-flowered === 23

23. Leaves intensely shiny above, usually more than 30 mm wide and with 3-5 veins. Corolla with a large opening (petals erect) === C. lucidus

23. Leaves slightly shiny above, usually less than 30 mm wide and with 6-8 veins. Corolla closed or with a small opening (petals erect-incurved) === C. ambiguus

24. Leaves 19-33 mm long, with flat leaf upper surface (veins not impressed). Inflorescence 2-6-flowered. Fruit 10-12 mm across, orange to orange-red, usually with 3 nutlets. Branches stiffly erect === C. simonsii

24. Leaves 45-210 mm long, slightly to strongly bullate (veins deeply impressed). Inflorescence 10-30-flowered. Fruit 6-11 mm across, (dark) red or orange-red, usually with 4-5 nutlets. Branches arching and spreading === 25

25. Fruit orange-red. Leaves 45-60 mm long === C. boisianus

25. Fruit dark red. Leaves 55-210 mm long === 26

26. Leaves slightly bullate, hairy on lower side at flowering, rarely more than 70 mm long. Fruit 6-8 mm across === C. bullatus

26. Leaves strongly bullate, often less hairy at flowering, usually more than 70 mm long. Fruit 8-11 mm across === C. rehderi

Cotoneaster ambiguus

Cotoneaster ascendens

Cotoneaster boisianus

Cotoneaster dammeri

Cotoneaster dielsianus

Cotoneaster divaricatus

Cotoneaster fangianus

Cotoneaster franchetii

Cotoneaster hjelmqvistii

Cotoneaster horizontalis

Cotoneaster integrifolius

Cotoneaster lacteus

Cotoneaster lucidus

Cotoneaster moupinensis

Cotoneaster nanshan

Cotoneaster rehderi

Cotoneaster simonsii

Cotoneaster sternianus

Cotoneaster villosulus

Cotoneaster x suecicus

Cotoneaster x watereri

Cotoneaster zabelii

Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith