Cotoneaster franchetii

Cotoneaster franchetii (Franchet's cotoneaster or orange cotoneaster) is a species of Cotoneaster native to southwestern China, in the provinces of Guizhou, Sichuan, Tibet, and Yunnan, and also in adjacent northern Myanmar and northern Thailand.^[2][3]

It is an evergreen or semi-evergreen shrub growing to 3 metres (9.8 ft) tall. The leaves are oval-acute, 2–3.5 centimetres (0.79–1.38 in) long and 1–1.5 centimetres (0.39–0.59 in) broad, shiny green above, pubescent below with dense whitish to yellowish hairs. The flowers are produced in corymbs of 5–15 together, each flower 6–7 millimetres (0.24–0.28 in) diameter, with the five petals pink on the outer side, white on the inner side. The fruit is a red pome6–9 millimetres (0.24–0.35 in) diameter; they are eaten by fruit-eating birds who disperse the seeds in their droppings.^[2][4][5]

Two varieties are accepted by some authors,^[5] but not treated as distinct by the Flora of China:^[2]

• Cotoneaster franchetii var. franchetii, described above
• Cotoneaster franchetii var. cinerascens Rehd, larger, to 4 metres (13 ft) tall, with leaves up to 4 centimetres (1.6 in) long, and up to 30 flowers per corymb

Some authors include a third variety, var. sternianus,^[3] although more often, this is treated as a distinct species, Cotoneaster sternianus.^[5][6] As Cotoneaster sternianus it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.^[7]

Cotoneaster franchetii es una planta ornamental popular . Se ha escapado del cultivo y se ha naturalizado localmente en partes de las Islas Británicas y el noroeste del Pacífico de América del Norte, ^{[ 4 ] [ 5 ]} así como en el norte de California. ^{[ 8 ]}

Científicos de la Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) del Reino Unido realizaron un estudio sobre la eficacia de los setos para absorber la contaminación atmosférica , comparando diferentes tipos de arbustos, como el cotoneaster, el espino blanco y el cedro rojo occidental . Descubrieron que las variedades de cotoneaster tupidas y de hojas vellosas, como esta, son "superplantas" que pueden ayudar a absorber la contaminación atmosférica. En carreteras con mucho tráfico, el Cotoneaster franchetii , denso y de hojas vellosas , fue al menos un 20 % más eficaz para absorber la contaminación atmosférica que otros arbustos que se suelen plantar a lo largo de las carreteras. ^{[ 9 ]}