Anacardiaceae (Cashew or Poison Ivy) family is consist of 82 genera and over 700 species. This family is distributed in the tropics of Africa, Asia, Australia and America with a smaller number of species occurring in subtropical and temperate areas. Many members of the family are well known for its cultivated edible fruits and seeds.  Some of the products of Anacardiaceae, including mangos (Mangifera indica), pistachios (Pistacia vera), cashews (Anacardium occidentale), and pink peppercorns (Schinus terebinthifolia), are enjoyed worldwide.

Cotinus coggygria (syn. Rhus cotinus), is an Eurasian species of the Cotinus that belonging to Anacardiaceae family. The plant is native from southern Europe, the Mediterranean, east across Caucasus to central China and the Himalayas. In Türkiye; plant is naturally found in, Black Sea region, West Anatolia- Aegean, Mediterranean coast and Dicle region of the country. Genus’s name Cotinus comes from the Greek word ‘kotinus’ meaning olive. Specific epithet coggygria comes from the Greek word ‘kokkugia’ meaning smoke tree.

Smoketree is a multiple-branching deciduous shrub, growing to 5–7 meters tall with an open, spreading, irregular habit, only rarely forming a small tree. Tree has glaucous, simple, rounded ovals leaves, 3–8 cm long. The autumn colour can be strikingly varied, from peach and yellow to scarlet. Plant start blooming in May. The pale yellow or yellow–green, flowers are numerous, hermaphrodite, produced in large inflorescences, 15–30 cm long; each flower 5–10 millimeters in diameter, with five pale yellow petals. The plant gets its common name of Smoketree from the billowy hairs (attached to elongated stalks on the spent flower clusters) which turn a smoky pink to purplish pink in summer.

Cotinus coggygria grows best in full sun or partial shade. Purple foliage forms will have poor colour if planted in deep shade. Plant tolerant of soils including alkaline. Well-drained soil is preferred, will not tolerate overly wet soils. After establishing, it will be drought tolerant. Plant withstands -25˚C temperature. Propagation may be done with seeds, but cultivars must be propagated by cuttings or tissue culture. Plant has a short life spam according to most of the trees, around about 20 years.

Today there are many cultivars of the Smoketree; the most insignificant of them is Cotinus coggygria ‘Royal Purple‘ with a compact growth habit and showy dark-purple leaves. ‘Young Lady’ is a compact, shrubbier version of the European species. It is best noted for its more manageable size; typically grows 120-180 cm tall over the first 10 years. ‘Velvet Cloak’, ‘Daydream’, ‘Golden Spirit’ are some of the other varieties.

Use in Landscape: The Smoketree is used as an ornamental plant, with several cultivars available in the landscape. Its striking leaves and spent flowers make it an excellent choice for a specimen or accent plant.  Often used in hedging or bordering walkways or patios. It is useful in dry, rocky soil where there is no irrigation. The tree is tough and adapts to restricted soil spaces. It could be used along a street under power lines and would not require pruning for many years.

Cotinus is in the same family as and closely related to the Rhus (sumacs). The species, along with other members of the Sumac family, has been used to make red dyes for textiles including weft-wrapped soumak rugs and bags in the Middle East. The names sumac and soumak derived from the Arabic word ‘summaq’, meaning red.

Cotinus coggygria is an important source of essential oils and extract with a wide range of health-promoting properties such as antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, antigenotoxic, hepatoprotective and anti-inflammatory. It possesses diverse bioactive properties and immense utilization in medicine, health care, cosmetics and as health supplements.