PLANT OF THE MONTH Hamamelis

One of the great things about being a gardener is that as the seasons change, so do the plants; they flower, fruit, shed their leaves and dazzle us with different attributes.

We never quite know what winter weather we are going to get, so it is good to have some plants you can rely on to perform no matter what the weather throws at you. Some of my favourite flowering winter shrubs are the witch hazels (Hamamelis), coming from countries with a similar, if not harsher, climate than ours; with flowers resistant to the cold, they are reliable performers.

Hamamelis have a bit of a reputation as being difficult to grow, but this could not be further from the truth. They can be slow to establish and make an impact with their size, but they do flower from an early age. Where to grow them is another area for debate; they are a woodland plant but will grow in exposed conditions and still perform well, so plant them in semi-shade or sun as long as the soil conditions are right.

They prefer a well-drained soil, but not too dry in summer and acid conditions (no more than pH6.5). They grow to about 3 metres in height and spread, but slowly, so you tend not to need to prune, but to keep them to a certain size for your garden you can hard prune the current years' wood in late winter. (see facing page)

When choosing one of these fantastic plants, there are many cultivars; the two Oriental species, Hamamelis japonica from Japan and Hamamelis mollis AGM from China, have been hybridised to create Hamamelis × intermedia, with the intention to get some unusual colours. One to be released is Hamamelis × intermedia 'Aphrodite' AGM, with vibrant orange sweetly scented flowers from January to March and a buttery yellow autumn colour.