Witch Hazel

Some witch hazels (Hamamelis virginiana) bloom in the October-November in our area. I noticed one blooming earlier this month at Howard County Conservancy near the junction of the walk from the front of the Gudelsky Environmental Education Center and driveway. The shrub is one of the few plants blooming this time of year and the flowers are rather understated. The color of the flowers on this plant were a pale yellow. There can be a pleasant fragrance from the plant too. On the day I saw it, the weather was cold and breezy….I saw it in bloom rather than smelled it.

Looking more closely – the flowers have petals like streamers. They start out curled up then unroll into gentle curves.

The shrub also had pods on it from last year. All the ones I checked had already ejected their seeds.