Witch Hazel Tree Definition

American witch hazel is a member of the witch hazel family. The name of the genus witch hazel is Latin from Greek and means a kind of medlar or service tree. The species name virginiana refers to native to Virginia. These natives grow throughout northeastern and southeastern North America, from Nova Scotia to Florida and from the Great Lakes to eastern Texas. For the ignorant hiker, it is an unexpected treat to encounter witch hazel bloom in late autumn, as the remaining plants of the forest prepare for a long hibernation. Photo by Larry Stritch. Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article on witch hazel She had light brown hair, dark hazel eyes, a fair complexion and a “padded chin”. The witch hazel we find today in the medicine cabinet is made by distilling the bark of twigs and roots with alcohol, creating a soothing lotion that reduces swelling and relieves painful joints. More than one million gallons of witch hazel are sold each year in the United States, making it one of the most popular natural remedies. Witch hazel is now in common use. What you buy in the store called witch hazel is actually a steam distillation of witch hazel branches.

Witch hazel sprigs are best distilled in the spring (for this you can use a still, similar to making an essential oil). Witch hazel is easily found in distilled form in pharmacies, where it is used for mouthwashes, reduces inflammation, treats skin irritation, sore throat (especially inflamed), hemorrhoids, acne, stations of certain viral infections and much more. You can also make a tincture (1 part alcohol for 5 parts bark and fresh leaves) and you can create a very astringent friction that can relieve pain. Witch hazel grows in acidic, loamy, moist, rich, sandy, loamy and loamy soil and well-drained soil. It tolerates a variety of moisture conditions. Witch hazel brings light and hope to dark places and dark times. I think witch hazel is a particularly powerful plant for us here in 2020, given the turmoil, economic uncertainty, climate change, and so many other major challenges we face as a species. It feels like our civilization is going through a very dark time – and witch hazel reminds us that we can shine in this darkness, that even when everything else retreats and dies, there is always room for a little hope and joy. For much of the year, witch hazel is a shrub that grows mostly unnoticed on the shady banks of rivers and in the humid forests of Georgia to southern Canada.

Its light gray bark and rounded green leaves blend well into the environment. But when witch hazel blooms, fragrant yellow flowers often appear against an early snowfall. American or common witch hazel (H. Virginiana), up to 4 1/2 meters (15 feet) tall, bears its flowers in late fall, with explosive fruits ripening the following year. Its yellow cup-shaped calyx (the collection of sepals) persists throughout the winter. The common name refers to forked branches that were sometimes used for water witches or dowsing to locate groundwater. Liniment-scented witch hazel is made from the dried leaves and sometimes the twigs and bark. Spring witch hazel (H. vernalis), about two metres tall, blooms in late winter or early spring. Witch hazel is expected to grow in hardiness zones 3-8.

See the map This woody plant is exceptional in its flowering pattern. The flowers are bright yellow, with 4 very thin creamy to bright yellow petals 1/2 to 3/4 inch long that appear in mid to late fall. The flowers are fragrant. In general, its bright yellow flowers are the only sign of color in forests where all autumn leaves rest on the forest floor. American witch hazel is pollinated by a moth. Witch hazel helps in the search for hidden things. Witch hazel has the long-standing ability in Appalachian and American folk magic traditions to find almost anything: water, gold, silver, salt, minerals, coal, or other buried treasures. Thus, witch hazel in general can help us do this work both physically in the world and, as in our next point, metaphysically in ourselves. Hamamelis is a genus of plants in the family Hamamelidaceae with three species in North America (H. ovalis[1], H. virginiana and H.

vernalis) and one in Japan (H. japonica) and one in China (H. mollis). North American species are sometimes called winter flowers. [2] [3] The fruits of witch hazel from last fall`s flowers are clearly visible under the bright green leaves of spring. Photo by J.S Peterson, USDA NRCS PLANTS Database. Native Americans used the elastic wood of the plant to make bows. The shrub is also valued for its medicinal properties: the astringent leaves and bark have been used to control bleeding and remove insect bites. A tea could also be made from witch hazel, which acts as a mild sedative. […] оригинал druidgarden.wordpress.com/2020/10/18/sacred-tree-profile-witch-hazel-hamamelis-virginianas-m. […] Witch hazel is also known as winter flower (for fairly obvious reasons), snapper, fleckerle, tobaccowood, pistachio or elm. John Eastman describes that the name “witch hazel” can be derived from the Anglo-Saxon wych (which is related to the word “whicker”), which means “to bend”.

As the leaves have an elm quality, it was sometimes called Wych`s elm. Distribution map of American witch hazel. The states are colored green where American witch hazel can be found. He also stopped and turned to her, studying her sweet face, trying to guess her spirit in the clear hazel eyes that lifted her towards his. It was introduced in 1736. Witch hazel extract is distilled from the bark of young stems and roots. Witch hazel is often found as an understory tree in evergreen and deciduous forests. Here in western Pennslyvania, it is often found as part of the undergrowth of the eastern hemlock/beech forest or even the oak hickory forest. witch, a tree with flexible branches, Middle English wyche, Old English wice; probably related to Old English In the case of weak witch hazel (genus Hamamelis), one of the five species of the genus Hamamelis (family Hamamelidaceae) can result from all shrubs and small trees native to eastern North America and eastern Asia. Some are grown for their yellow flowers, with four narrow, twisted, ribbon-like petals worn on hot winter days or early spring.

Witch hazel produces small clusters of four-petalled flowers that are borne near the branches and have deciduous leaves, well visibly veined, oval and toothed. The first Puritan settlers in New England adopted witch hazel as the supposed remedy of the natives, and its use was established in the United States in the 19th century. [19] A missionary, Dr. Charles Hawes, took charge of the witch hazel steam distillation process[19] and created a product “Hawes extract,” which was sold in Essex, Connecticut, in 1846 by pharmacist and chemist Alvan Whittemore. [24] Hawes` process was refined by Thomas Newton Dickinson, Sr., who is credited with beginning commercial production of witch hazel extract in 1866, also in Essex, Connecticut, and eventually established nine production facilities in eastern Connecticut in the 20th century. [19] [25] After his death, his two sons, Thomas N. Dickinson, Jr., of Mystic, Connecticut, and Everett E. Dickinson of Essex each inherited portions of the family business and continued to produce witch hazel extract and operated competing “Dickinson” companies, which were continued by their descendants until 1997, when the production operations of both companies were consolidated at the American Distilling plant in East Hampton, CT. [19] The yellow to orange-red flowers of witch hazel give a colourful cleft to the dreary winter landscapes.