Sandy’s Garden ... Witch Hazel

My better half – Ailsa – is a believer in this product for the relief of the discomfort of bruises, sprains, minor skin irritation, rough skin and sore unbroken skin.
Sandy SimpsonSandy Simpson
Sandy Simpson

It is suitable for adults and children, although you must be at least 16 years old to purchase this product. The approved method for using it is to soak a piece of cotton wool with the solution and gently dab the solution on to the skin before covering the skin with a bandage and keeping the bandage moist with ***** *****. Most people will not have problems, but some may get an allergic reaction in the form of a skin rash, red or itchy skin. And ***** ***** is, of course, witch hazel.

The name ‘witch’ in witch hazel has nothing to do with a usually elderly female who lives alone with her cat and uses a broomstick as her primary means of transport. It comes from the Middle English (the English language from c. 1150 to c. 1470) word ‘wiche’, which comes in turn from the Old English (the language of the Anglo-Saxons) word ‘wice’, meaning ‘bendable’. Witch hazel is a plant whose proper botanical name … Hamamelis … is the Greek name for a different plant. (Even botanists have been known to be confused!). The first variety to be introduced into the United Kingdom came from North America in the early eighteenth century and enjoyed some popularity in the grounds of estates. This variety … Hamamelis virginiana … is unlikely to be found among the shrubs in your local garden centre, being planted nowadays almost exclusively in woodland/wildlife restoration projects. The variety which is usually stocked by plant centres is Hamamelis mollis … the tree with this year’s flowers and last year’s fruit at the same time (Hamamelis) which has softly hairy young shoots and leaves (mollis) … and was originally found in the Chinese district of Jiujiang in 1879 by the plant hunter Charles Maries. These first imports languished in the grounds of Maries’ employer, Veitch Nurseries of Chelsea and Exeter, for more than 20 years before the plant’s decorative potential was realised and examples were put on the market.

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Witch hazel is a deciduous shrub which grows to something between 4 and 6 metres tall – say, between 14 and 20 feet in old money. It is a popular ornamental plant, grown for its 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, essentially between January and March, a characteristic which explains its popularity. Witch hazels need free-draining soil conditions with an adequate supply of moisture and prefer acid to neutral soil (pH 4.5-6.5) .The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) summarises witch hazel in these words: ‘Common name: witch hazel; botanical name: Hamamelis; shrub, deciduous; flowering time: mid-late winter, except for Hamamelis virginiana, which flowers in autumn; planting time: autumn to winter; height and spread: 4-5m (13-16ft) by 2.5-5m (8-16ft); aspect: full sun or partial shade; hardiness: hardy; flowers are frost resistant: difficulty: easy.

I read on Wikipedia that, ‘The leaves and bark of the North American witch-hazel, Hamamelis virginiana, may be used to produce an astringent decoction as a cooling agent for various uses in traditional medicine, herbalism, and skincare products. This decoction was widely used for medicinal purposes by Native Americans and is typically sold in modern pharmacies as witch-hazel water and as semisolid ointments, creams, gels, and salves.’ Note that it is the American variety of witch hazel which is used in herbal medicines, so the variety you may find locally is for growing as a decorative shrub and not for amateur herbalists. And, as usual, I neither endorse nor censure any claims made for products made from witch hazel.