Fall bloomers are all selections or hybrids of the native hamamelis virginiana. Winter/spring bloomers like Jelena are hybrids of h. japonica crossed with h. mollis. In a normal year, Jelena should have set its buds and the h. virginiana should have finished blooming or be blooming. This is an unusually warm fall, so things may be just delayed. Last winter was cold, but my Jelena bloomed normally if much later than usual. I think you would have to have experienced at least -15 to kill all the buds. If the Jelena is still a relatively small plant, check to make sure the understock on which Jelena was grafted has not taken over. Too much shade will also inhibit flower production on both types.

All good points. Thank you for your response.

The flower buds are a little bigger than a pin head at the end of a 1/32" stalk. They tend to appear on less vigorous lateral branches and they would have been set already for spring 2015. Ditto for the common Witch Hazel except that they have already bloomed. Vigorous growth usually = fewer flowers.

Interesting replies, thxs. One thing to note is a lot of shrubs and trees are very late. Some of the common WH in the nursery haven't bloomed either and are about the same size.

I think mine get enough sun. Are there some in full sun that have issue blooming?

I had Jelena and Girard's Purple in about 6 hours sun, both bloomed well during mild winters. Until last year both where killed outright. Might have grown from the roots but didn't have the patience. Only rolling with H. vernalis which has much more reliable fall color and blooms. Several cultivars selected for red fall color as well. Otherwise they are usually gold with the occasional orange highlight.

My Common Witch hazel has no blooms at all which I find unusual considering it bloomed great last year. Could it be very late to bloom given the warm fall in Maine?

"My Common Witch hazel has no blooms at all which I find unusual considering it bloomed great last year. Could it be very late to bloom given the warm fall in Maine?"

At this time of year, you will either see flower buds (unlikely), flowers (more likely), or the developing fruit on short stalks (most likely). The absence of any of those means your witch hazel did not/will not flower this year.

What do the unopened buds look like?

"What do the unopened buds look like?"

4th post in this thread....

In my experience all of these grafted witch hazels need a few years to establish in the garden before blooming well; more so, for example, than the typical rhododendron. Which is odd because I sometimes see them blooming in nurseries.

Unlikely to be on the web, with millions of them shown in bloom.

Is the picture posted Nov 6 showing unopened buds? I think so. But they don't look like a pin head to me. So maybe not.

Yes, they are.