Witch-hazel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hazel

You can support Wikipedia by making a tax-deductible donation. Witch-hazel

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Witch-hazel (Hamamelis) is a genus of flowering plants in the Witch-hazel family Hamamelidaceae, with two species in North America (H. virginiana and H. vernalis), and one each in Japan (H. japonica) and China (H. mollis).

They are deciduous shrubs or (rarely) small trees growing to 3-8 m tall, rarely to 12 m tall. The leaves are alternately arranged, oval, 4-16 cm long and 3-11 cm broad, with a smooth or wavy margin. The horticultural name means "together with fruit"; its fruit, flowers, and next year's leaf buds all appear on the branch simultaneously, a rarity among trees. [1] The flowers are sometimes produced on the leafless stems in winter, thus one alternative name for the plant, "Winterbloom". [1] Each flower has four slender strap-shaped petals 1-2 cm long, pale to dark yellow, orange, or red. The fruit is a two-part capsule 1 cm long, containing a single 5 mm glossy black seed in each of the two parts; the capsule splits explosively at maturity in the autumn about 8 months after flowering, ejecting the seeds with sufficient force to fly for distances of up to 10 m, thus another Hamamelis virginiana alternative name "Snapping Hazel". [1] Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae Hamamelis species are used as food plants by the larvae of Division: Magnoliophyta some Lepidoptera species including Feathered Thorn. Class: Magnoliopsida The name Witch has its origins in Middle English wiche, from Order: Saxifragales the Old English wice, meaning "pliant" or "bendable". Hazel is Family: Hamamelidaceae derived from the use of the twigs as divining rods, just as hazel Genus: Hamamelis twigs were used in England. Gronov. ex L. Species The Persian Ironwood, a closely related tree formerly treated as Hamamelis persica, is now given a genus of its own, as Hamamelis japonica Parrotia persica, as it differs in the flowers not having petals. Hamamelis mollis Other closely allied genera are Parrotiopsis, Fothergilla and Hamamelis vernalis Sycopsis (see under Hamamelidaceae). Witch-hazels are not Hamamelis virginiana closely related to the hazels.

Cultivation and uses

They are popular ornamental plants, grown for their clusters of rich yellow to orange-red flowers which begin to expand in the autumn as or slightly before the leaves fall, and continue throughout the winter.

1 of 3 6/3/08 11:12 AM Witch-hazel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hazel

Numerous cultivars have been selected for use as garden shrubs, many of them derived from the hybrid H. × intermedia Rehder (H. japonica × H. mollis).

The bark and leaves are astringent; the extract, also referred to as witch hazel, is used medicinally. Extracts from its bark and leaves are used in aftershave lotions and lotions for treating bruises and insect bites. Witch-hazel is the active ingredient in many hemorrhoid medications. It is also a common treatment for postpartum tearing of the perineum. The seeds contain a quantity of oil and are edible. References

1. ^ a b c http://www.witchhazel.com/about.htm Dickinson's Witch Hazel Flora of China: Hamamelis (http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=114541) Flora of North America: Hamamelis (http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=114541) Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan.

Close up of Hamamelis Hamamelis in Fürth Flowering Hamamelis Hamamelis × sp. flowers, Menai City Park (Germany), in the Colonial Park intermedia (H. Bridge, Wales. 2004-02-08. Arboretum and japonica × H. mollis) Gardens.

H. japonica H. Moliis tree in the H. Moliis in the H. Moliis leaves in the Autumn Autumn Autumn

2 of 3 6/3/08 11:12 AM Witch-hazel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hazel

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hazel" Categories: Saxifragales | Medicinal plants

This page was last modified on 20 April 2008, at 16:53. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details.) Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a U.S. registered 501(c)(3) tax-deductible nonprofit charity.

3 of 3 6/3/08 11:12 AM