WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Cotoneaster dammeri 'Coral Beauty', WUCOLS IV

How often to water Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster in California

In July in the Central Valley, established Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days: about 2.2 gallons each time for a plant 2 feet across, about 0.8 gallons a week. Coral Beauty is a bearberry cotoneaster, a low evergreen groundcover from China that stays under a foot tall and spreads 6 to 10 feet. Its stiff, trailing stems root where they touch soil and cascade over walls. Small white spring flowers give way to plenty of bright orange-red berries, and the small glossy leaves take on bronzy tones in winter.

Ground coverRated for 4 of 6 zones

How often to water Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster, month by month

Your city
Plant width
2 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 4 inches down under the mat in summer means Coral Beauty can take a deep soak
  • Leaves dulling and the mat thinning during a long hot spell can indicate thirst
  • Fewer berries after a dry summer can follow too little water
  • Yellowing leaves and dieback in wet, heavy soil point to poor drainage

How to water it

  • Water deeply and infrequently, letting the soil dry between soakings
  • Run drip or a soaker under the spreading stems
  • Plant in cool sun to part shade in well-drained soil
  • Use it on banks and slopes, where rooting stems help hold soil
  • Trim stray stems to keep the edges neat

Through the seasons

Water a new planting regularly until stems spread and root in. Once established, it is drought tolerant and needs only occasional to infrequent soaks, though some summer water improves the berry crop. It flowers in late spring, and berries color in fall and hold into winter. WUCOLS rates Coral Beauty low water on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley and on the south coast. South Inland carries a moderate water rating. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to the low desert and has not evaluated it for the high desert.

In pots

Coral Beauty can spill from a large pot, raised planter or wall box. Use a well-drained mix. Water when the top couple of inches dry, and let it drain fully. In summer, check every few days, since a mat in a pot dries faster than one in the ground. Empty the saucer after each soak. Trim long stems that root over the edge. In winter, rain usually covers it.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
1.07gal per sq ft in JulyLow water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
6.84 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.631.31.92.50.16JAN0.26FEB0.43MAR0.61APR0.83MAY0.99JUN1.07JUL0.95AUG0.72SEP0.47OCT0.22NOV0.14DEC0.631.31.92.50.16JFM0.61AMJ1.07JAS0.47OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 1.07 in Jul, 6.84 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Coral Beauty Bearberry Cotoneaster: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.160.310.78––
Feb0.210.260.320.87––
Mar0.350.430.461.3––
Apr0.470.610.561.61––
May0.580.830.641.95––
Jun0.640.990.692.29––
Jul0.641.070.792.51––
Aug0.60.950.742.33––
Sep0.50.720.61.86––
Oct0.350.470.461.33––
Nov0.190.220.330.9––
Dec0.120.140.260.68––
Year4.86.846.218.41––

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated low water in the Central Valley, like Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

BougainvilleaBougainvillea & spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLantanaLantana camara ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyYarrowAchillea millefolium (non-native hybrids)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySagebrushArtemisia spp. (shrubby)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCalifornia Native YarrowAchillea millefolium (CA native cultivars)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyWoolly YarrowAchillea tomentosalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGround Morning GloryConvolvulus mauritanicuslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRock CotoneasterCotoneaster horizontalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySouth African GeraniumPelargonium sidoideslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLippia GroundcoverPhyla nodiflora (Lippia nodiflora) cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRock SoapwortSaponaria ocymoideslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyMother of ThymeThymus praecoxlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyVancouver Jade BearberryArctostaphylos uva-ursi 'Vancouver Jade'low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTrailing LantanaLantana montevidensis (sellowiana) ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGermanderTeucrium chamaedrys ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster in summer?

In July, established Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days in the Central Valley, about every 27 days on the south coast and about every 9 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster needs about 0.1 gallons a day for a plant 2 feet across and about 0.4 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates Coral Beauty bearberry cotoneaster separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, low water in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, not evaluated in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not suited to this region in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Does Coral Beauty cotoneaster need much water?

Once established it is drought tolerant. Occasional watering gives better berry production. Inland, it needs more than near the coast.

Is Coral Beauty good for slopes?

Yes, its trailing stems root along the ground and help control erosion on low banks. It covers ground quickly. It also cascades over walls.

Are cotoneaster berries poisonous?

Eaten fruits may cause mild stomach upset. Keep children from eating them. The common name comes from bears that eat the berries.

Does Coral Beauty handle hot summers?

Bearberry cotoneaster can struggle in very hot summers. Give it some shade inland. Water deeply during heat.

How do I propagate Coral Beauty?

Layering is easiest, since stems root where they touch soil. Softwood cuttings in early summer also work. Keep new plants moist.

More plant watering guides

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Sources