It’s going to be a while before we see cherry blossoms in the Pioneer Valley. But early spring does bring some blooming delights. One of my favorite sights in early spring is the witch hazel. These ethereal shrubs — sometimes small trees — are covered with delicate flowers ranging in color from butter yellow to rust orange. You might miss them entirely if you’re not on the lookout for them. But on a sunny day, they capture the light and radiate their loveliness far and wide.
I knew the word witch hazel from an early age because my parents always had a bottle of it in their medicine cabinet. I had no idea what it was, but when my sister Jennie and I made our secretive investigations of the medicine cabinet, we were intrigued by the distinctive “Dickinson’s” label and its slightly funky smell. We knew the forbidding chemical smell of alcohol from terrifying trips to the doctor’s office where the alcohol swab was invariably followed by a hypodermic needle (I still shudder sometimes at that smell and its early associations). Witch hazel smelled far more benign, whatever it was used for.
Later on, as adolescents plagued by occasional skin “break-outs,” we learned that witch hazel was an astringent used to calm skin irritations. We dutifully dabbed it on our pimples but I don’t recall that it did anything magical. But the process of fetching the bottle from our parents’ bathroom, pouring it onto cotton balls and anointing our faces with it felt like magic.
It was many years later that I met my first witch hazel bush at my in-laws’ house in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The previous owners of their house had planted several witch hazels, along with Japanese maples, weeping cherry trees and cryptomeria (Japanese cedar) to create a Japanese-inflected garden behind their house. My mother-in-law would cut long branches and place them artfully in a vase, Ikebana-style. Within a day or two, the tight little buds, bunched like tiny fists, would unfurl into clusters of crinkly, thread-like petals. The subtle, spicy-sweet smell of its flowers did not mimic the smell of Dickinson’s, which, I learned, is made from the bark and leaves of the plant.
You might consider planting a witch hazel this spring. Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Arnold’s Promise’ is a popular variety. As I mentioned in a previous column, ‘Arnold’s Promise’ is hybrid Asian strain was developed in the 1920s by chance at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain, outside Boston. The cross-breeding occurred when a hungry honey bee visited two different species, Chinese witch hazel (Hamamelis mollis) and the Japanese species (H. japonica), that stood side by side. Seven seeds were germinated from this pairing. One of these grew into ‘Arnold’s Promise’; later crosses have resulted in the popular ‘Jelena,’ which has copper-colored blooms, and the pale yellow ‘Pallida.’ ‘Arnold’s Promise’ grows in a vase-like shape up to 20 feet tall and wide. Other varieties of H. x intermedia are slightly smaller and have more rounded, spreading habits.
H. x intermedia varieties are hardy in zones 5 through 7. They do best in full sun but are also happy in part shade. The ideal growing situation for witch hazel is morning sun with light shade during the afternoon to protect them from scorching summer sun. They prefer moist but well-drained, loamy acidic soil. They can suffer from drought stress, so it’s best to mulch their roots in summer to keep them cool and water them in periods of extended dryness. Witch hazel dazzles in the fall, too, with cheery yellow and orange foliage.
As I’ve learned over the years from more experienced gardeners, an important principle of garden design is planning for year-round interest. Spring and summer flowers provide just a small part of a garden’s overall visual appeal. By incorporating plants like witch hazel that delight us in late winter and early spring, we can extend the growing season to fill a period when we most need something fresh and new.
Mickey Rathbun, an Amherst-based lawyer turned journalist, has written the Get Growing column since 2016.
A new art exhibition at Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston features the work of award-winning artist George Sherwood. Sherwood began his career as an engineer and eventually was inspired by the kinetic sculptures of George Rickey. His large-scale, stainless steel sculptures explore aesthetic systems of space, time, and the dynamic relationships of objects in motion. His work is usually made of stainless steel, the reflective qualities of which integrate the sculpture into its environment. For his outdoor works, wind speed and direction, shades of light, time of day, precipitation, and seasonal color transform the qualities of light and movement of the sculpture. These kinetic sculptures move and change with the wind, evoking shimmering leaves, flocks of birds, schools of fish and waves of light and water. Sherwood’s work is on show from Apr. 13 through Oct. 14, 2019.
On Apr. 23, from 6 to 8 p.m., Friends of Lake Warner will host a workshop for homeowners titled “Water and Soil conservation in the Lake Warner Watershed. The event will take place at North Hadley Congregational Church, 243 River Rd. Come learn what you can do on your property to conserve soil, attract pollinators and help protect the lake you love. Speakers will include: Jason Johnson, exec. Director of FOLW, and Masoud Hashemi, UMass Extension professor of plant biology. Free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Marilyn at:
Hampdenhampshireconservation@gmail.com or at 617-576-0810.
On Apr. 27, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Berkshire Botanical Garden will offer a hands-on shrub and tree planting/transplanting workshop led by arborist Ken Gooch, Forest Health Program Director for the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and a Massachusetts Certified Arborist. All aspects of successful planting will be demonstrated, and participants will assist in transplanting a multi-stem shrub and planting a small tree. Learn how to successfully transplant shrubs through correct timing, placement and techniques designed to create minimal disturbance and ensure smooth transition to a new site. Consider the differences between bare-root, container-grown, or balled-and-burlapped trees, and understand the importance of siting. Participants should dress warmly and bring pruners and work gloves; dress for the weather. Members: $25/nonmembers: $35. For more information and to register, go to: berkshirebotanical.org