Try doing a forum search

https://www.chicagobotanic.org/plantinfo/smart_gardener/which_witch_hazel_should_be_your_yard

Those are very pretty Jay. Do you notice a scent on them? I've heard they are fragrant as well. I hope they continue to do well for you.

They aren't my witch hazels, so I don't know which are the most fragrant.

From what I've read the most fragrant species is the Asian Hamamelis mollis. Of the 2 native species hardy for you, H. virginiana and H. vernalis, H. vernalis is the more fragrant.

British selection 'Pallida' is wonderfully fragrant and visually striking but there seems to be a problem with incorrect material being on the US market. And I don't know where the hardiness cutoff is for this one.

A few years ago the Scott Arboretum had a web page or something (blog post?) with an evaluation of all of theirs for fragrance and 'Wisley Supreme' was the winner.

H. virginiana has kind of a medicinal smell to it. It's interesting.

I know of one Arnold Promise here in MN 4b that does reasonably well. Problem is the rootstock was allowed to grow up so now about 1/2 the plant blooms in the fall, the other half in spring.

Arnold Promise is not reliably flower bud hardy at my location (north of Detroit). Even last winter (2019/20) when our coldest temp (Feb) was only around 0F, nearly all the flower buds on my AP were killed (probably due to the record cold of 5F we had on 11/13/19). I'm not optimistic that I'll see any flower buds open this spring after a low temp near -20F on 2/17/21.

Some promises aren't kept.

I found H. vernalis to have a good scent. I think they bloom more profusely and strongly scented in some circumstances more than others. I don't know all the variables. They like moister richer soils in my experience, but will grow well in other spots.

One of my favorite shrubs. My best bloomers bloom in fall, not early spring. The intermedia has never been stellar for me, but my site was upland and gravely soil. I used to work in a spot with a vernalis growing at the edge of a pond and it smelled amazing. I think when it's doing well in the right spot it puts out more fragrance. This is not scientific, just a casual observation.

I tried to post a photo of one of mine, but the Internet was having none of it . . .

Here the Witch Hazels haven't started blooming yet in N.E. Ohio - - - but as I type this I can hear the Red winged Blackbirds singing for the first time this year! Lots of them! Spring is not too far away!!!

I have two mature Witch Hazels, not sure of the varieties - they were planted here on the farm by my great grandmother about 50 yrs ago. One reliably blooms the first thing in the spring with rusty orange colored flowers, the other has pale yellow flowers that bloom anytime after October when the temperature stays above freezing. They are both fragrant and both have thrown seedings around through the years.

Always remember when you plant a shrub or a tree give it enough room to mature! Here are some pictures - the one with the leaves on it is at least 20' wide and 15' tall.

- My father told me the story that whenever a new well was dug here (in the old days) they would have someone come here called a diviner to locate the water source underground. He would always use a forked Witch hazel stick, and my dad swears that the end of the stick would bend down to the ground when it was passed over an aquifer. That same man told my great grandparents that there was oil below the front steps of their home. Many years later they located and dug an oil and natural gas well on the property. ....And the name is Jeb - not Jed Clampett !

I think if they were borderline here I would still risk it. Unfortunately they're not usually something you just come across for a reasonable price at the nursery... but they're so cool to have flowering in what seems to be the middle of winter.

Actually some years here they do bloom in the middle of winter, just not this year. Mine are just starting now. We had a dry spring last year and most of my newer plantings didn't set flower buds... because they're in too dry and sunny spots, so go figure... but Pallida is full of flowers and just one or two warm sunny days away from full bloom. Most everything else is still under snow but this bush is going to flower. Pretty awesome imo :)

Material I see on the market here in my area as 'Pallida' is never correct. So you should check yours against descriptions - the true item has jumbo flowers and a knockout fragrance.

I grew one of the stand ins for years and it never got to a point where the flowers were as big as they were supposed to be. So the smaller flowers on plants in nursery sizes is due to them being incorrect. And not merely too young and small to be showing full sized blooms.

Also when I was looking into this matter I was able to compare with a clearly true to type example of some vintage at the Seattle arboretum.

Interesting observation, thanks, and I don't think mine has jumbo flowers... How would jumbo flowers compare to one of the other cultivars such as Diane or Jelena?

As for fragrance I have a terrible nose for many scents and have yet to smell anything more than a barely noticeable fruity scent on any of these, so I don't think I can go by that... and there are no comparison plantings within 100 miles so that's also out. True or not I think I'll just need to be grateful that 13 years ago my local nursery gave me my one and only chance to buy a witch hazel locally!

I don't think you can judge size well from any of these photos, but they're from Feb 9 and 19th 2020 and I thought it interesting that this year they're not even flowering yet.

Scroll down for 'Pallida' (RHS Garden Wisley is where it originated):

Witch Hazel Nursery - Photo Library

Thanks for a great website. Over 100 cultivars and its good to know a place like that exists. The open day must be something... and I think I need more...

Mine have long since finished blooming. If I don't go out mid-February I miss it.

I have Hamamelis 'Rochester' (I think it's a hybrid).

It smells really good.

My only complaint is that the blooms are somewhat hidden by last years dead leaves. They don't fall off until the month after it blooms when the new foliage appears. The old leaves won't even pull off easily.

If it wasn't for that I'd recommend it unreservedly- it's a nice large shrub that grows relatively symmetrically and never gives me any trouble other than a few suckers in the early years.

I don't have any good bloom photos, but here's the form.

I have two natives, H. virginiana grows wild here, and I planted vernalis something like 10 years ago. The vernalis looks just like the photos Jay posted and has a scent that makes me think of floral soap. It isn’t wafting, but is discernible if I get my nose close. Mine does retain leaves. I checked it last week and the buds are still tight closed.

As an experiment some years ago I planted an H. X intermedia “Diane”, but the parts above the snow line struggled to survive and the only flowers I got were near the ground. It gradually got smaller over time as pieces died back, and last I checked it was still there but half the size it was when planted, so it isn’t a successful choice on the northern edge of zone 5, even when temperatures remain in the solidly zone 5 range. It never bloomed early enough to make it a winter bloomer regardless, with flowers in late March or early April.

This witch hazel used to be at the Manchester, NH airport and I loved seeing it in February or March when I flew through. Someone decided to remove it a few years ago, much to my distress.

My Diane in its best year

H. vernalis, framed carefully to avoid the worst of the clinging leaves from last season.

Depauperate specimen in front of the local court house. I remember when this one was planted and its seen some rough treatment. It's bloom finishing up this week 03-09-21

New word for me: Depauperate. ‘Falling short of natural development or size’. Just have to say I love the language! Thanks for that new word, Sam!

You're welcome Indiana. Stunted is exactly what that WH is. Unbelieveably my friend Wolfgang Oehme planted the WH 33 years ago, I remember it well. Perhaps it got damaged or vandalized, am really not sure.

Just chiming in to say I have really enjoyed seeing these WH photos. Always a favorite of mine. I have two on my property, they are virginiana, I got them at a native plant nursery. Here is a photo from the Arboretum where I used to work. They have a witch hazel collection. These were not marked, :( They might have been at one time. From the time of year and flower color, i think virginiana. The intermedia did not put on the same intensity of a flower show, but they were younger . . .

Well what do you know ... even after a temp near -20F on 2/17/21 the flower display on my Arnold Promise isn't going to be "depauperate" this year (and yes, thank you Sam for expanding our vocabulary). Here it is - not quite full bloom yet. Promise kept.

Proud owner stands by his AP witch hazel today in Maryland. This selection is popular because of the long blooming period and loads of flowers even when young. Dense upright habit is typical of AP. Great fragrance, if temps are 60°F or higher flowers are busy with honeybees.

It must be a late one; even in my chilly corner of NE MD, 'Wisley Supreme', 'Jelena', and 'Rubin' are all past peak.

Really nice specimen, thanks for sharing. My understanding is that Arnold Promise is one of the later blooming intermedias, but I'm surprised that it's still going strong there in MD. Mine looks to be past its peak. For comparison my Cornus mas is now showing color but only a few flowers have actually opened. GDD (base 50) is only about 14 or 15 here as of yesterday.

I have some WH virginiana bareroot whips coming from the Putnam Country Plant Sale next week. Anyone have any experience with deer browsing or decimating them? Should I protect them?

Wish the woods around here had an understory of WH (there are a few, but you have to search). Spicebush is early & yellow, but not that showy.

Kitasei, I haven’t had issues with deer bothering the wild witch hazel here, but the deer pressure here is much lower, so no guarantees.

Today I knocked on the door and asked the owner for the name of this shrub. Apparently many years ago an 'Arnold Promise' WH was planted. This sure doesn't look like AP to me.

Below is a branch that was tucked away deep within the leafy shrub. How is this explainable?

I have one called Harvest Moon and it blooms in the fall. https://www.chicagobotanic.org/plantcollections/plantfinder/hamamelis_virginiana_harvest_moon--harvest_moon_witch_hazel

The deer here have not bothered my witch hazel, but my neighbors also have unbothered dayllies and tulips. I think they find other things to eat (wooded Vermont). My children did however crush it sledding down a hill. :(

It's still tiny and I can't find pics but it was very pretty. Cutting it to the ground as it should grow new shoots.

If you're looking for early spring color, as someone posted above Spicebush is an easy growing, early bloomer and birds love the fruits. I planted five of them last fall and am looking forward to a small grove of them. They have these planted in Prospect Park in Brooklyn and they are a lovely early burst of fragile spring color.

My all time favorite early understory bloomer is serviceberry. It is so hard to find the straight species canadensis! Everyone is sold out. I have autumn brilliance but my woods are wet and I **love dots of of the fragile white puffs of shadblow--the essence of spring woodlands imo.

Sam—MD, witch hazels are grafted, and the yellow one is either the root stock coming through with a shoot, or yellow is the original plant, and the root stock has taken over.

This season’s Hamamelis vernalis. We have had some warm days and I could smell a light scent as I took this photo.

gdinieontarioz5

something tells me Sam already knew that.

Question is did he tell the current owner they should cut away 95% of their shrub!

Hi gdinieontarioz5, thanks for your response, I think that the leafy understock has taken over.

this article is short but very informative! thanks jay! Your plants are beautiful!

https://www.chicagobotanic.org/plantinfo/smart_gardener/which_witch_hazel_should_be_your_yard employee monitoring