Witch Hazel trees over rated?
kali_deere
4 years ago
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dbarron
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Which Witch Hazel?
Comments (8)Thanks everyone for the responses. Bboy: I've looked up Autumn Embers and it looks like a great one for my purposes. If I don't plant it here, I'll definitely plant it at my next place, in which I hope to have a "Witch Hazel" grove. Whaas: Thanks for the info. My main concern is yellow-gold fall color, although a mix is nice. I'm really trying to get more yellows into the fall scene here, as it seems like everything is cultivated toward the reds when the growers are going for fall color! I'm going to research vernalis more. Mainegrowers and Whaas: Yes, I think I'm finding out that it takes a really good freeze before the color really gets going. I have noticed that most of my fall color comes so late (Grn. Mtn. Sugar Maple colors just before everything dies for winter!) so I'm trying to balance it to get a really long and beautiful (lots of mixed colors) autumnscape. Re: Rare Find: I initially called them but received little help -just read to me, out of a catalogue or something, info. that I could find on my own. I was really looking for info. from people who could give me advice from their own experience. Perhaps I just caught the wrong two people at RFN that day. Nhbabs: You've said some intriguing things. I've always nixed planing Fothergilla as my soil pH is somewhere along the lines of 7.1, but I see azaleas and things growing around here, so perhaps if one plants them with a lot of organic matter and feeds them with some food geared toward acid-prefering plants, it would work. (On that thought, I think WH is an acid prefering tree, so I guess I could try the Fothergilla since I seem to think that WH will work here!) COULD YOU GIVE ME A LITTLE MORE INFO. ON THE BRANCHING HABIT OF VERNALIS VS. VIRGINIANA? Besides fall color, one of the main things that interest me in the garden with shrubs and trees is form. Also, I noted your thoughts on winter die-back, and I do think now that I may go with virginiana or vernalis, at least in this cold garden. Thanks again, everyone! Amy...See MoreHelp ordering witch hazel
Comments (8)You're in luck -- Fairweather gardens in NJ has a huge selection of witch hazels this fall, including several different varieties of h. vernalis! See the link below. the asian varieties, h. mollis and h. x intermedia, are not fully hardy in zone 5 unless well-protected, and planting in the fall, you risk losing it to root rot if the ground stays wet -- witch hazels have rather sensitive root systems. I've got an h. vernalis 'Sandra' that's in a container that's too small, took a beating in the dry summer, got knocked over for a few days while I was away, and still sets buds. It's about 6 ft. now, after a year and a half, and I haven't had to prune it yet. This is one tough tree. I agree that h. vernalis doesn't have as showy or fragrant flowers as the asian varieties, but it does have great fall foliage, and the spring growth starts out purplish. The straight species h. mollis is supposed to be the most fragrant, with some of the hybrids like 'Arnold's Promise' close behind. In all cases it's a light, clean fragrance, not a heavy perfume, but hey, you can't be too picky for flowers in the middle of winter! Pretty much all witch hazels are spreaders, so if your space is tight vertically, you may very well be better off with a fothergilla major, which tops out at about 6ft, has pretty, scented white flowers in early spring, and excellent fall foliage. It's also tighter and more compact in habit than the witch hazels. If Fairweather is too pricey (keep in mind their plants are much larger and fuller than what Forestfarm usually ships), you can also try Roslyn Gardens for witch hazel and fothergilla selections. Good luck; I think these are great, underused shrubs! Jim Here is a link that might be useful: Fairweather Gardens...See MoreMy witch hazel is in bloom
Comments (15)My Diane has about 5 years in my garden and was a decent sized shrub (maybe 3'x3') when I planted it. It tends to grow a bit wider than tall - Chris Lane in his book on witch hazels gives its ultimate size as 2.5m tall x 3m wide. However, I'm at the northern edge of the range for H. x intermedia cultivars, so I don't expect that it will ever reach that. I am grateful for the snow cover since it helps with protection on those cold winter nights. Mine has grown slowly and since we still have about 3 1/2 to 5 feet on the ground (depending on the drifting) it is still buried. (My shorter compost pile is also completely buried, and last week when I mistakenly stepped off the path I've packed out to the compost I instantly sank to my hip and had a hard time getting free . . . we are still in full winter mode for a few weeks.) From what I read, neither Diane nor Arnold Promise are especially early bloomers when compared to other witch hazels though they are compared to almost any other woody plant in this area. I think the appeal of AP is the scent and the bright, relatively large flowers, while the deep red-orange color is the appeal of Diane. I would love to have an AP or an Angelly or one of the other scented, yellow, large-flowered H. x intermedia, but Diane is the only one I've ever seen around here, and mail order ones are so small....See MoreChinese Witch Hazel vs Vernal Witch Hazel
Comments (12)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...See Moregardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
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sah67 (zone 5b - NY)