Contorted Plants

Changes in a plant’s cytoplasm (a thick solution that fills each cell and is enclosed by the cell membrane – mainly composed of water, salts, and proteins) may result in curled leaves, twisted stems or prostrate or climbing growth habit.

Latin Name	Location	Flowering season	Description
Corylus avellana 'Contorta' Corkscrew hazel	Habit variant	Late winter to early spring	A large deciduous shrub with highly contorted and twisted branches bearing broadly ovate leaves and yellow male catkins.
Crataegus monogyna 'Flexuosa' Contorted hawthorn	Habit variant	Late spring	A small, usually upright tree of 3-4m in height. White flowers are followed by bright red berries in the autumn. The contorted branches provide interest in the winter months.
Cryptomeria japonica 'Cristata' Crested Japanese cedar	Habit variant		An ornamental conifer that can grow to 7.6m in height. It has a slender, pyramidal shape. The needles curving inward toward the twig they are borne upon. The foliage is normally green but can brown during the winter.
Ligustrum japonicum 'Rotundifolium' Japanese privet	Habit variant	Late summer	A very slow growing evergreen that reaches approximately 1m in height. It has dark green round leathery leaves, dense foliage and clusters of creamy white flowers.
Prunus laurocerasus 'Camelliifolia' Twisted laurel	Habit variant	Late spring	A vigorous, flowering, evergreen shrub with twisted and curled dark green leaves. It reaches up to 4m in height and produces spiky white flowers.
Robinia pseudoacacia 'Tortuosa' False acacia	Habitat variant	June	A deciduous tree with furrowed black bark. It can reach 15-24m in height. Its white or pink flowers grow in long pendant clusters and are followed by thin, flat brown pods that stay on the tree throughout the winter.
Salix babylonica var. pekinensis 'Tortuosa' Corkscrew willow	Habitat variant	Spring	A fast-growing, medium-sized deciduous tree of upright habit, with narrow, twisted leaves. Its branches and shoots are highly contorted. It produces small yellow catkins.
Salix caprea 'Kilmarnock' Kilmarnock willow	Habitat variant	December to March	A bushy upright large shrub or medium-sized tree, up to 15m in height. 'Kilmarnock' is a male form with grey catkins and yellow anthers.
Thuja occidentalis 'Filiformis' White cedar	Habitat variant		An upright, rounded to conical, tree with a weeping habit and red-brown bark. It reaches 2.1-2.4m in height. Yellow to yellow-green scale-like foliage appears in flattened sprays.