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What's blooming in your back yard?
By Cynthia B. Coleman • Staff Writer
 | | Above: If you happen upon a large shrub or small tree along sunny, bright areas at the wood's edge that is covered with hard, brown nutlike "fruit," you have found a Witch Hazel, inconspicuous in summertime except for the fruit. |
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The poor Witch Hazel - so neglected in the summer months, as the shrub's showy, frayed, yellow blossoms bloom in fall or winter, mostly on leafless branches. Yet, it is during the summer months when this plant is most interesting and unusual.
Witch Hazels belong to the Hamamelis genus of the Hamamelidaceae family, with only two species found in the United States - H. vernalis (native to the Ozark Plateau) and H. virginiana (native to the eastern U.S. and named for the area where first discovered, Virginia). In China and Japan two other species grow, one in each country.
The name Witch Hazel is misleading; the shrub has nothing to do with witchcraft, nor the hazel tree. "Witch" comes from the old English word wiche that means "pliant" or "bendable." The early English settlers realized this shrub's supple, pronged branches were similar to the hazel trees back in England and both trees could be used for water dowsing. However, the leaves of both the Witch Hazel and the hazel nut tree are very similar.
 | | As the mature, brown fruit ripens the new fruit grows alongside it, though they are hidden by leaves growing out from the ends. (Recorder staff photos by Cynthia B. Coleman) |
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Hamamelis means "together with fruit," and refers to shrub's show of flowers, fruit and future leaf buds appearing on the branches at the same time. In summer, the branches are covered with two types of fruit: immature and mature.
This summer, the green fruit seen on the Witch Hazel comes from last fall's flowers. The brown seed pods are the mature fruit from the previous fall, as the fruit takes more than a year to mature.
From August to September the mature fruit ripens. Each fruit holds two capsules, each containing one shiny, hard, black seed.
If you want to see a "show," find a Witch Hazel shrub now, mark it and then watch it during the months of August and September. The shrub will live up to its name of "Snapping Hazel" when the seed capsules split open with a pop and cast the seeds out as far as 30 feet.
 | | The Witch Hazel's fruit is a hard seed pod containing two capsules with one seed in each capsule. This fruit pod is not a leftover from last fall; it takes a year for the fruit to ripen. |
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Most of us only know of Witch Hazel from its wintry blooms or see it sold as an astringent next to rubbing alcohol. Witch Hazel has long been used as a medicinal plant by the Native Americans and the early settlers. The bark was used to treat skin ulcers, sores and tumors. Twigs were used in sweat lodges to relieve sore muscles. Leaves and twigs were boiled to make a rub to treat cuts, bruises and insect bites, while a tea was used for cough and colds.
The seeds were a favorite of southern Native American tribes and are said to taste like pistachio nuts, but should not be eaten unless one is absolutely sure the plant is a Witch Hazel. For other uses, look up Witch Hazel online or visit the library to look through the wildlife books.
Witch Hazel can be found in woodlands or along the sunny edge of the woods and prefers sun or dappled shade and requires moist, but well-drained soil. The photos shown here were taken in a parking lot in Mitchelltown where Witch Hazel grows along the eastern edge. In the next few months, it should put on a real show.
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