Hamamelidaceae: Hamamelis virginiana (L.) Gray.
(witch-hazel)
Witch-hazel is a woody shrub/small tree common in the understory of deciduous and mixed forests in Nova Scotia but becomes less common toward the eastern part of province and is uncommon in Cape Breton.1 The alternately borne leaves have wavy margins and are slightly asymmetrical at the base. Flowers with 4 ribbon-like, yellow petals appear from mid-September to November in Nova Scotia. The fruit is a grayish, downy woody capsule which requires until the late summer/early fall of the year after fertilization to fully develop. At maturity the fruit splits open and 1- 2 seeds are forcibly ejected. H. virginiana is native the eastern U.S. south to Florida and Texas and to southern Canada from Ontario to Nova Scotia and PEI. It is reported to be present but "critically imperiled" in P.E.I.
Sources | Notes & Refs | Selected Web Resources | Line Drawing
Click on images for larger versions.
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June 28, 2006. Halifax County: Point Pleasant Park, Halifax. Photographer: JackPine. Notes |
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Leaves and developing fruits. |  Note persistent sepals on the developing fruits . |
| Sep. 13, 2006 Halifax County: Point Pleasant Park, Halifax. Photographer: JackPine. |
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 Habit. Thiis specimen was in a heavily shaded, moist location. |  Open fruit. Bar is 1 cm. |
 Flower buds |  Maturing fruit and new flower buds. Bar is 10 mm. |
 Early flowers on a plant in a nearby more exposed location; upper surface of leaf. |  Leaf lower surface. |
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Oct. 30, 2007. Halifax County: "The Oaks" woods, south end Halifax. Photographer: JackPine. |
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 Habit. No fruits from previous year remained; plants were still flowering. |  Twig with terminal bud. Bar is 1 cm. |
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Dec. 1, 2007. Halifax County: Point Pleasant Park. Photographer: JackPine. |
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Selected Web Resources
- Taxonomic Status (ITIS) Copy the species name above and paste it into a form on this ITIS Canada page to confirm the nomenclature and list synonyms.
- NatureServe Explorer Copy the species name above and paste it into a form on this page to view a map of its distribution within North America and its conservation status by province and state.
- Fire Effects Information System Referenced overview of botanical and ecological characteristics, fire ecology, managment.
Notes & References
- In the Flora of Nova Scotia, 3rd ed, it is described as ″Scattered in Yarmouth County, Common in Kings and Lunenburg counties, becoming more infrequent eastward, and found only as far as the Strait of Canso.″ Eugene Quigley commented (personal communication, Sep. 2009) that in his work with Natural Resources he had found it twice in Inverness county.
Page posted 30 Oct. 2007. Modiifed 24 Sep. 2009.
Copyright © Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society & Photographers