I have wild red currant, Rovada domestic red currant, Magnus black currant, red gooseberry, no name, yellow sweet gooseberry, no name, and Josta, tiny cuttings only as they are first year bushes. I suspect they have not had their chilling requirements yet, so cuttings or small bushes would probably be better in early spring. Where did your sweet chestnuts come from? I am looking for a seed source I don't have to shuffle the genetics a bit. Jocelyn

designsaavy...no problem about the hijack...it's still about the Corian. I purchased my counters from Home Depot. There was a local fabricator I really wanted to use but HD had a sale that was too good to turn down. As luck would have it, HD contracted their fabricating and installs to that same fabricator so I got the best of both worlds. When I purchased mine, I took the layout, with exact measurements to Home Depot and you purchase the approximate square footage based on your layout. If that number ends up being a little more or less, they adjust before installation. Ours was pretty much dead on. Also, we actually purchased/contracted for our counters several months before they were installed. It was no problem at all...the fabricator just said call when you're ready for templating.

I have a unnamed H. vernalis and one struggling H. x intermedia 'Diane', and the H. virginiana grow wild and so there are zillions of them. As far as color here, the H. virigniana is a beautiful clear yellow, and the best ones bloom after the leaves have fallen with relatively large yellow flowers, but no perceptible scent to me. The winter silhouette is quite nice. I really like them. My H. x intermedia (struggling since we are at or perhaps past its northern limit) has a consistently gorgeous orange/yellow/red mix of foliage color and deep red-orange spring flowers that stand out against the remaining snow. Color is a bit too blue in this photo. H. x intermedia 'Diane' From garden photos 07 If H. intermedia were hardier or my area warmer, I would plant many of these, and I may plant more, hoping to find some that are a bit hardier. Fall color may depend on the soil (mine is acid fine sandy loam) or some other factor, IDK. Here's a yellow H. x intermedia (not mine, but at the airport 35 miles south of me - different microclimate) pruned to tree form. From witch hazels My H. vernalis is the least attractive of the bunch. From garden photos 07 Flowers are tiny (to compare this photo with 'Diane' above, realize that the base holding the petals is almost twice as large for 'Diane' as for the vernal witch hazel) and pale reddish orange from a distance, though en mass they do show against the evergreens behind them. I haven't found the scent particularly attractive, sort of like cheap soap. It also tends to keep almost half its leaves, though I may try to remove some of them once they are thoroughly dry this winter. No appreciable fall color. Even though I live on an old farm and actively garden on a couple of acres, I wouldn't waste the space or money on another of these. Perhaps some named varieties would be better or you will have better luck with your seedlings than I. Blooming H. vernalis (yes it needs pruning) From witch hazels H. vernalis fall color From witch hazels So my order of preference is H. x intermedia (assuming finding one hardy enough to grow well here) H. virginiana H. vernalis YMMV This post was edited by nhbabs on Sun, Dec 7, 14 at 11:01

This is one at my niece's house nearby. It's a venerable old thing, maybe 25' across. And is almost always in bloom at Christmas. It has been in bloom for at least 6 weeks and is just now starting to go over. When first opened, the blooms are very red but fade to that more orange tone as they age. The plant was already well established when my niece bought the place so no idea what the cultivar is. It is not Diane, as I have grown that one myself and it doesn't get nearly as large. And this is much redder than Diane when first in bloom and with no retained dead foliage. If I had to guess, I'd say 'Feuerzauber'.