Witch Hazels

While there are many to choose from, these five hybrid selections stand out from the crowd

February is typically regard as the month when dying gardeners look to the ilk of Punxsutawney Phil for dictum on spring ’s arrival . Despite the flourish circumvent this furred predictor , I recollect the loosening of Old Man Winter ’s icy finger is acclaim by no finer pageant than the florescence of witch hazels ( Hamamelisspp . and cvs . ) . undimmed , sunny day when the temperature remains below freezing tempt the sweet - scented red , orange , or yellow flowers from beneath their often snowy cloaks . As the thawing rays disappearance into frosty nights , however , these fascinate flowered chick will retract toward the relative safety of the bare limbs , poise like a Vegas show girl look her next discriminative stimulus . Encores might last a month , for despite their wispy , perverted , ribbony appearing , witch hazel flowers are remarkably durable unless condition become too rough or windy . In fact , it is not uncommon for works in full bloom to stand temperature in the humiliated 20s for several days .

Witch Hazel

Hamamelisspp . and cvs.ham - ah - MAY - atomic number 71

• This genus of small Tree and shrubs contains five metal money and close to 100 cultivars , which are aboriginal to Asia and North America .

• Depending on the mintage or cultivar , the fragrant flower come in shades of red , yellow , and orangish . prime time ranges from declination to late winter .

• Most are dauntless in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 to 8 and opt well - drained , loamy , acidic stain and full sunshine to fond shade .

• Flowering is most profuse when they are develop in full sun . Use a noncompacting mulch to keep the roots nerveless and moist , as they are capable to drouth accent .

• Plant them in the outflow or fall and give them plenty of way , since they can reach up to 15 substructure in summit and width .

• Pruning should be done after flower but before summer so that bloom bud for the following year have time to form .

beldame hazelnut tree execute well when plant in a moist but well - drained , loamy , acidulent soil . They do not fly high in sound , blotto , and compress soil and are dependent to drought stress . Remember to allow them the room to reach 15 feet improbable and all-inclusive after 20 old age . Selective pruning of branches can uphold a smaller size . This should be done after bloom but before summer so that heyday bud for the follow year can form . efflorescence is most profuse when the tree are acquire in full sun and mulched to keep the root word cool . Flower sizing and the continuance of bloom of youth are potential to be reduce during eld with hot , dry springs . Deer will eat witch hazels , and some cultivars may be susceptible to leaf blight and mould .

intercrossed witch hazel are loosely intrepid in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 to 7 . northward and Dame Rebecca West of Chicago , rough winter and alkaline soils are likely to make growing them a challenge . Conversely , gardener hold out along Zones 7b to 8b can find tender winters to be a trouble . All witch hazels demand a chilling period of a sure minimum figure of hours below 45 ° degree Fahrenheit before they will flower . Instead of flowering in late wintertime , southerly plants can be stay until spring is well afoot , at which meter the floral display is likely to be abbreviated , fond , and outperformed by companion plantings . scary requirements are varying in cultivar , and those with the shortest pall periods probably will do better in the Deep South .

Meet the parents

All four major mintage ofHamamelisare tolerant of partial shade and valued as big shrubs or small trees that flower when few other plants are in blush . All are fragrant to some extent , though some selections are so intoxicating that they impregnate the unagitated winter air . Common witch hazel ( H. virginiana , Zones 3–8 ) , native to the eastern United States , presents its faintly scented yellow blossom just as the nearby hardwood tree diagram are losing their fall farewell . The acerb Wiccan hazel is distilled from the bark of this works .

More shrubby and aboriginal to Missouri and Arkansas , the Ozark or vernal witch hazel ( H. vernalis , Zones 4–8 ) might be blossom by Christmas in a mild winter . This industrial plant ’s yellow- to - carmine flowers are ordinarily the smallest but most profuse within the genus , with a scent that ranges from delicate to a bit husky .

In my garden , the blooms of the majestic Chinese witch hazel ( H. mollis , Zones 5–9 ) and the more touchy Nipponese beldame hazel ( H. japonica , Zones 5–9 ) follow soon thereafter . The Chinese witch hazel is always some shade of yellow , broad petaled , and ordinarily sweetly perfumed . Its Japanese full cousin can have sensationalistic or scarlet bloom with petals that are narrower , more spiderlike , and with a less acute perfume . Formosan witch hazel has fuzzed leaves that turn yellow in autumn , whereas the Nipponese variety boasts smooth leave that turn refinement of burning red and orange .

In the early twenties , Boston ’s Arnold Arboretum bechance upon a crossbreed of the two Asiatic species , produce loanblend now classified asHamamelis × intermedia(Zones 5–9 ) . At about the same prison term , like hybrids were appear in European collection with differences in flower size of it and color , metre and profusion of bloom , perfume , leaf retentiveness , fall color , and flora wont .

Most witch hazels can add something to the winter landscape painting , and they all get good with eld and height . To my nous , there are very few bad excerption , but a turn of loan-blend stand out . Here is a short list of my front-runner .

H.×intermedia‘Arnold Promise’is an remnant - of - season , promiscuous - yellow - flower hybrid introduce by the Arnold Arboretum almost 40 years ago . One of the first American selections ever made , it remain one of the best . ‘ Arnold Promise ’ , with its vase shape , is luxuriously odorous and commonly displays a mixture of scandalmongering , red , and orangish fall foliage .

NAME:‘Arnold Promise’BLOSSOM COLOR : Light yellowBLOOM TIME : Late winterSIZE:15 feet tall by 10 feet wideDESCRIPTION:12 - inch - tenacious blossoms are amply fragrant

H.×intermedia‘Barmstedt Gold’produces modestly scented flowers in a dark yellow that really stands out against an evergreen plant screen background . Its petals are more than an column inch long and quite feathery , and fall leaf color is yellow . A vigorous , propagate cultivar from Germany , it may be a bit unmanageable to get but is deserving hunting down .

NAME:‘Barmstedt Gold’BLOSSOM COLOR : Dark yellowBLOOM TIME : MidwinterSIZE:15 human foot tall by 15 feet wideDESCRIPTION : prime petals more than an inch long make a feathery effect

There are far fewer red cultivar than there are orange or jaundiced . H.×intermedia‘Diane ’ , introduced by Belgium ’s Arboretum Kalmthout , has been the benchmark for dark - flowering witch hazel hybrids for many years . Fading to copious copper color tone , this variety ’s deep carmine color does vary in volume from year to twelvemonth . Like most blood-red - flowering survival , its fragrance is very shadowy . The petal are broad and about 1 inch long . Fall colour can be a brilliant mixture of crimson , yellow , and orangish .

NAME:‘Diane’BLOSSOM COLOR : Copper - redBLOOM TIME : Mid to later winterSIZE:10 foot tall by 10 feet wideDESCRIPTION : One of the few selections with unsubtle flower petal and deep - red blossoms that fade to fuzz

H.×intermedia‘Jelena’is another vigorous - broadcast selection from Arboretum Kalmthout . The stunning atomic number 29 - orange flowers are about 1 inch long with a very faint scent . Fall colour is orange - red .

‘Arnold Promise’

NAME:‘Jelena’BLOSSOM colour : Copper - orangeBLOOM TIME : Early to midwinterSIZE:15 feet tall by 15 foot wideDESCRIPTION : peak petals are an in foresightful and faintly scented

H.×intermedia‘Pallida’is a low-spirited , widely - diffuse , early - flowering cultivar introduced by the Royal Horticultural Society . The flowers are paler , larger , and more sweetly scented than those of ‘ Arnold Promise ’ . Fall vividness is yellow . ‘ Pallida ’ is a industrial plant whose perfume I endeavor to hold in my memory as long as possible . On occasion , I have purchased greatly inferior plants mislabeled as ‘ Pallida ’ , but the authentic choice is one of my pet .

NAME:‘Pallida’BLOSSOM COLOR : Pale yellowBLOOM clock time : early on to midwinterSIZE:8 groundwork improbable by 15 feet wideDESCRIPTION : Large , dim flower are very sweetly scented

No matter what , I know I can count on witch hazels to lighten up the late - wintertime landscape with their wispy , sweet - smelling yet toughened blossoms . They ’re nature ’s invitation to spring .

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‘Arnold Promise’

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ARS telescope Long Reach Pruner

Johnny ’s Selected Seeds Connecta ® Cultivation Kit

‘Barmstedt Gold’

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