WITCH HAZEL
When I was a child and had a cut, bruise or other swelling, some older member of the family would invariably say, “Put some witch hazel on that.” We had a bottle of witch hazel in the bathroom linen closet and even though people recommended witch hazel regularly, the bottle never seemed to change. The level of witch hazel inside was always the same, the label was always the same and the bottle itself was always in the exact same spot. I found that bottle after both my parents died and threw it away on the grounds that it had probably metamorphosed into something toxic.
The bottle I threw away can’t possibly have been the same as the one my parents bought shortly after their marriage, because I have dim memories of the substance actually being dabbed on me. It is very useful for everything from insect bites to small wounds. The shrub from which it comes is equally useful in the garden.
Last week I caught sight of a splendid witch hazel in full bloom. From a distance I thought it was a forsythia, because of the bright yellow blooms, but common sense told me it was too early for even the bravest forsythia. A closer look confirmed my second guess–witch hazel. The tip off is the unusual flowers, which cover the plant and look like golden spiders.
The witch hazel I saw might well have been a popular variety called ‘Arnold Promise’, a hybrid of two Asian species, Hamamelis mollis and Hamamelis japonica. Known botanically as Hamamelis x intermedia, ‘Arnold Promise’ and hybrids like it can grow between fifteen and twenty feet tall, with an upright habit. According to woody plant expert Michael Dirr, there were, as of 1998, at least fifty cultivated varieties of the intermedia hybrids. Some have yellow flowers, often with red centers; others have red or red orange blooms.
Witch hazel’s other great attraction is its sweet fragrance, which is strong in ‘Arnold Promise’ and present in varying degrees in other species and hybrids. If you are tired of all the usual winter smells–wet wool, oil heat and stuffy interiors–walk by a witch hazel in full bloom and you will think of spring.
When witch hazel is out of bloom, you can recognize it by the rounded leaves, which have parallel veins and grow alternately on the plant’s stems. Depending on the species and variety, the leaves color in the fall, turning shades of yellow and red before falling from the branches. The bark on mature specimens is smooth and gray or gray- brown, while new growth is sometimes pubescent or hairy. Witch hazels produce hard seed capsules after the flowers have fallen away. Eventually the capsules split open, projecting the shiny black seeds up to thirty feet from the original plant.
Witch hazel is neither a true hazel nor a tool of the witches’ trade. As is generally the case, the common name has more to do with etymology than sorcery. In Old English, “wice” means pliable. “Wice” was eventually transformed into “wyche,” which was applied to various English trees with pliable branches. This word may have been used to describe the equally pliable stems of Hamamelis species, evolving over time into “witch.” Witch hazel’s rounded leaves resemble those of true hazel family members, and that probably accounts for the “hazel” part of the common name. Hamamelis has its own genus, Hamamelidaceae, which also includes the familiar shrub fothergilla . True hazels belong to the genus Corylus, part of the birch or Betulaceae family. The “melis” part of the Latin genus and family name comes for the Greek word for “apple,” which probably relates to another perceived resemblance–that of apple and witch hazel leaves. Elsewhere in the world “melis” still means “apple,” and if you go to Athens today, you can enjoy a “melopita” or apple pastry.
Some hamamelis species are native to North America, including vernal witch hazel or Hamamelis vernalis and Virginia witch hazel, Hamamelis virginiana. The leaves and twigs of the latter are the source of medicinal witch hazel. Preparations made from the species have long been used internally and externally to reduce swelling and stop bleeding. It is still an ingredient in some hemorrhoid creams. Bottles of witch hazel, much like the one in my parents’ medicine cabinet, are still available in drug stores.
You don’t have to have inflammation or bleeding to need a witch hazel shrub–only a yearning for spring. Local nurseries sometimes carry a variety or two, but for a better selection try ForestFarm, 990 Tetherow Road, Williams, Oregon 97544; (541) 846-7269; www.forestfarm.com. The extensive catalog is $5.00.