Hamamelis VIRGINIANA

Hamamelis VIRGINIANA - American witch-hazel, Virginia witch hazel, Snapping hazel, Witch hazel.

Can be grown in bonsai style!

Witch-hazel is a genus of deciduous shrubs in the family Hamamelidaceae. The genus includes 8 natural species and 4 varieties, but two of them - Hamamelis megalophylla Koidz. and Hamamelis betchuensis Makino - are known only to specialists.

In the wild, they grow in forests and along riverbanks on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, the Atlantic coast of North America, in Nova Scotia, and in East Asia. In Central Europe, the plant is planted in 'physic gardens'. In addition, it can be found among park and garden plantings.

The plant was first discovered in North America. There, scientists recorded 2 species. The rest were found at the opposite end of the Earth - in East Asia. Although there are few varieties of witch-hazel, they managed to baffle scientists completely: some shrubs bloom in early spring, others in late autumn, and still others in -18 °C (0 °F) frosts.

Asymmetrical oblong foliage blends with the green palette of forest neighbors all summer, and only toward autumn becomes bright yellow, and then golden or crimson. Moreover, what the shrub will look like is determined each year by the weather. Flowers and last year's fruits can flaunt on the branches simultaneously.

Witch-hazel seeds require a long stratification period: first they are kept for 2 months in a warm environment, then 3 months in a cold environment at a temperature of 4-5 °C (39-41 °F). At home, after the warm period, seeds are placed in the refrigerator in late autumn or winter and planted in spring.

Before planting, seeds are soaked for 24 hours, then sown superficially and sprinkled with a thin layer of soil. They are moistened with a spray bottle, covered with film, and germinated in the light at a temperature of 21-22 °C (70-72 °F). Seedlings need ventilation. Waterlogging and desiccation of the sowings must be avoided.

Germination of seedlings may also require a long period of up to 1 year. In our store, seeds have undergone a warm aging period and are already stored in a cold environment; upon purchase, specify the duration of the completed cold stratification.

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This beautiful and unpredictable exotic is not demanding in care at all. It is important that there is sufficient moisture and space for growth. The soil in the tree circle should not dry out. It must always be loose and slightly moist. Dryness is permissible only on the top layer. Particular attention should be paid to watering procedures during a dry summer.

Witch-hazels need shoot shortening extremely rarely. This happens when the shrub becomes heavily congested. Then, after flowering, the branches are thinned out slightly, pinching off those directed inward into the crown. The main thing is to promptly remove emerging root suckers.

For winter, young saplings up to 5-7 years of age are necessarily hilled up with fallen leaves or covered with hay. Trunk circles are mulched in autumn with a thick layer of compost to protect the roots from frost. Witch-hazels should be fertilized twice a year: in autumn and spring.