A Detailed Guide to Witch Hazel Propagation Methods: Easily Master the Breeding Techniques

  Witch hazel (Hamamelis) has uniquely shaped and fragrant flowers, blooming before the leaves in early spring, with petals like threads, light and graceful, making it an important early-spring flowering nursery plant. It is suitable for specimen planting in garden corners, beside ponds and streams, and at the edges of shrub groupings, and is also a great material for bonsai. Witch hazel's unique petals and graceful tree form attract many people; when combined with landscape stones, flowers and grasses, each tree becomes its own scene, stirring the emotions naturally. So how do you propagate witch hazel? Let's find out together below.

  Witch hazel mostly grows on hillsides, stream valleys and similar sites; it is a high-mountain tree species and a warm-region tree species, but witch hazel has fairly strong cold tolerance and can still grow in the open at temperatures of minus 15°C. Witch hazel is mainly propagated by sowing, and can also be propagated by layering and grafting.

  1. Sowing propagation. Witch hazel flowering period (detailed introduction) is from December to March of the following year. The fruit ripening period is October. When mature, the capsule is yellow-brown and has the habit of ejecting the nursery seeds when the capsule splits. Therefore, the collected fruits should be covered and dried in the sun to avoid loss of nursery seeds. The thousand-seed weight of nursery seeds is 65 grams.

  The nursery seeds have a long dormancy period, so they do not germinate in the same year after sowing and will sprout and emerge in the spring of the second year. Therefore, the nursery seeds are mostly stratified in wet sand for 1 year, then sown in autumn or spring. Drill sowing is used, with a row spacing of 20-25 cm and a sowing depth of 2 cm. After sowing, cover with soil; after emergence, provide shade, keep the soil moist, pay attention to drainage prevention during the rainy season, and stop shading in mid-to-late September. The nursery plants continue to be cultivated in place for one year. After the second year's growth period ends, transplant them and cultivate large seedlings.

  2. Layering propagation. It can be carried out in both spring and autumn. Cut and wound the branch below a node, and bury it in a pre-dug trench with a depth of 6-8 cm. Keep the top shoot facing up, fix the branch with a bamboo peg, then cover with soil, and keep the soil constantly moist. In the spring of the following year, it can be cut from the mother plant and planted separately. Transplanting: Witch hazel is relatively tolerant of transplanting. It is generally carried out in October-November. Transplanting too late will affect early-spring flowering. Small and medium seedlings should be transplanted with native soil, and large seedlings need to be transplanted with a soil ball.

  Witch hazel is mainly propagated by sowing, with layering done between rows. Collect seeds in October, cover and expose to strong sun to prevent seeds from popping out; after threshing and cleaning, sow immediately or store densely until January of the following year for drill sowing. At the latest, do not exceed February; if sowing is delayed until March, it will take until the following year to germinate and emerge. It germinates and emerges in late April; set up a shed for shade, keep the soil moist during the seedling stage, stop shading in mid-to-late September, leave it in the seedbed for 1 year, divide and plant in the third year, and after another 2-3 years of cultivation it can gradually leave the nursery. Layering is done in autumn: wound the lower branch below a node, press it into the soil to a depth of about 6-8 cm, then fix it with a bamboo peg. Keep the top shoot facing up, keep the soil constantly moist, and in the following spring it can be separated from the mother plant. Transplanting is carried out in October-November; late transplanting affects early-spring flowering. Small and medium seedlings should be kept with native soil, and large seedlings must have a mud ball. Witch hazel likes semi-shade, so choose a location with shorter sunlight exposure for planting.

  Before sowing, dry the collected nursery seeds in the sun, then sow immediately or store them in sand until early spring of the following year for sowing. During the seedling stage, a shed is needed for shade, and the soil should be kept moist. Layering can be carried out in spring and autumn: wound the lower branch below a node and bury it in the ground, keep the soil moist, and after rooting, separate it from the mother plant in the second year. Transplanting is best carried out in October-November; small and medium seedlings need to be kept with native soil, and large seedlings need to have a mud ball.