What a wonderful plant!!
Witch hazel (herein WH) seems to address two important concerns I hear a lot: it seems like everyone is short on space for large trees, and everyone is lacking full sun to grow fruits and vegetables. Witch hazel is great a plant to consider if either of these apply to you!!
WH is generally a forest dwelling, understory shrub. Around me, I often see it just uphill of streams, where it can get water but also benefit from being in an edge habitat and the extra sunlight the edge provides. However I also see them growing around the city in harsher conditions, closer to roads and sidewalks, and WH holds its own!
WH has long been known to gardeners and landscapers. It is covered in gangly yellow flowers in fall when almost nothing else is flowering. Many different ornamental selections have been made over time. There are a number of different species of WH, some are from North America and some are from China and Japan. However we are focused on growing the common native WH, which is also the species used in herbalism.
WH is a well known in natural skin care products today, and has long been known in herbalist traditions, as an astringent. Astringents generally contract tissues and close pores, making WH useful in many external conditions. It also has a history of use internally due in part to its anti-inflammatory properties. For herbal preparations, generally the bark of WH is used, however some herbalists use the leaves as well.
For sale this year we have three year old seedlings.
Growth Parameters:
Expect a multi-stemmed shrub 15-20 feet tall at maturity. Prefers part-sun to part-shade, likes somewhat wet areas but not underwater.
