Witch Hazel

Remove dead or crossing branches back to their point of origin, and cut suckers off at the base, so the shrub keeps its natural arching vase form. Common witch hazel flowers in October through December, so a late winter cut costs you nothing, but if you grow a vernal or hybrid type that blooms February into March, wait until its flowers have faded before you cut. Witch hazel sets its flowers on old growth, so wood removed now is wood that would have bloomed; heading cuts also destroy the layered, spreading branch habit that is the whole reason to plant this shrub.

On an established multi-stemmed plant that has gone thin and twiggy inside, selectively cut the oldest, thickest stems out at ground level while it is leafless, leaving the younger stems to carry the canopy. Witch hazel also tolerates an occasional hard cut back to renew the whole plant. Established witch hazel responds well to heavy renewal pruning and resprouts vigorously from the base, which is the same trait that lets harvested plants regrow; the oldest stems flower least and shade out the young wood that flowers best.

Take your prunings for distillate in late fall and early winter, after leaf drop. The twigs and bark are the parts used; commercially they are chipped and boiled, and the condensed steam is the astringent product. Note that common witch hazel is still flowering in this window, so cut what you need and leave the rest of the flowering wood standing. Late fall and early winter is the harvest window used by the commercial witch hazel trade, and the shrub is leafless then, so a cut takes wood rather than a working canopy and the plant resprouts from the base. Do not mistake leafless for dormant: common witch hazel blooms mid-October into early December, so wood cut now is wood in flower, and those flowers are one of the last nectar sources of the year — take prunings selectively rather than stripping the plant.

Set out containerized plants early in the growing season in moist, well-drained soil, in light shade to full sun. Avoid both wet, poorly drained ground and dry sites. Do not plan to move it later. Witch hazel establishes best from containers and resents transplanting once established, so the spot you choose now is effectively permanent; flowering improves with more sun, but the roots want steady moisture.

Spread a 2 to 4 inch layer of mulch out over the root zone, kept back off the stems. Mulch holds the even soil moisture this shrub needs and keeps the shallow woodland root system from swinging between wet and dry, which is the condition it evolved under on a forest floor.

Water consistently through the first two growing seasons, enough to keep the root zone moist rather than soggy. Witch hazel grows best in moist, well-drained soil: avoid wet, poorly drained sites and avoid dry locations. Even once established it prefers steady moisture, and it will tolerate somewhat drier sites but not a genuinely dry one. Iowa State calls for consistent moisture through the first couple of growing seasons and says to avoid dry locations. This is a woodland understory shrub — Maryland Extension describes it as ideally moist, tolerant of temporary wetness and somewhat drier sites, and vulnerable to sunscorch in full sun — so a young plant on a dry, exposed site checks and stalls rather than establishing.

Pull or cut suckers at the base as they appear through the growing season. If your plant is a named hybrid like Arnold Promise or Jelena, look hard at anything rising from below the graft union and remove it immediately. Hybrid witch hazels are commonly grafted onto common witch hazel rootstock, and common witch hazel is especially prone to suckering, so unchecked rootstock shoots will outgrow and eventually replace the cultivar you paid for.

Expect cone-shaped bumps standing up from the leaf surface, and spiny galls on the leaves and seed pods. These are the witch hazel cone gall aphid and the spiny witch hazel gall aphid, both native. Do not spray. If a small infestation bothers you, prune the affected shoots out in summer. Both aphids are native insects that alternate between witch hazel and birch, and the galls are cosmetic. They do not harm the plant and do not need managing, so any insecticide here buys you nothing and costs the beneficial insects in the shrub.