Corylus americana

Corylus americana, the American hazelnut[1] or American hazel,[2] is a species of deciduous shrub in the genus Corylus, native to the eastern and central United States and extreme southern parts of eastern and central Canada.[1][3]

Corylus americana
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fagales
Family: Betulaceae
Genus: Corylus
Species:
C. americana
Binomial name
Corylus americana
Marshall, 1785
Distribution of American hazelnut

Description

The American hazelnut grows to a height of roughly 2.5 to 5 m (8 to 16 ft),[4] with a crown spread of 3 to 4.5 m (10 to 15 ft). It is a medium to large shrub, which under some conditions can take the like of a small tree. It is often multi-stemmed with long outward growing branches that form a dense spreading or spherical shape. It spreads by sending up suckers from underground rhizomes 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 in) below the surface.[5]

It blooms in very early[1] to mid spring,[6] producing hanging male (staminate) catkins 4 to 8 cm (1 1⁄2 to 3 1⁄4 in) long, and clusters of 2–5 tiny female (pistillate) flowers enclosed in the protective bracts of a bud, with their red styles sticking out at the tip.[1][7] The male catkins develop in the fall and remain over the winter. Each one has a pair of bracts and four stamens.[6][8]

American hazelnut produces edible nuts that mature at a time between July and October. Each nut is enclosed in two leaf-like bracts[8] with irregularly laciniate margins.[1]

  • Small bud-like female catkins and hanging male catkins
  • Fruit cluster (nuts enclosed in leaflike bracts)

Ecology

The nuts produced by American hazelnut are a mast of squirrels, deer, turkey, woodpeckers, pheasants and other animals. The male catkins are a food staple of ruffed grouse throughout the winter.

Uses

The nuts are edible raw,[9] although smaller than the more commonly cultivated filberts (Corylus maxima,[1][10] Corylus colurna,[1] Corylus avellana,[10] and hybrids thereof).[10]

Native Americans used Corylus americana for medicinal purposes.[1]

Cultivation

Corylus americana is cultivated as an ornamental plant for native plant gardens, and in wildlife gardens to attract and keep fauna in an area. There are cultivated hybrids of Corylus americana with Corylus avellana which aim to combine the larger nuts of the latter with the former's resistance to a North American fungus Cryptosporella anomala.[10]

It is a medium to fast-growing species, that suckers moderately, eventually producing a multi-stemmed, clump appearance.

It adapts well to a range of soil pH and types, but does best on well-drained loams. American hazelnut prefers full sun for best growth and development. Though it can grow and persist in partial shade, plant density and fruit production are greatly reduced.

References
  1. Furlow, John J. (1997). "Corylus americana". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). 3. New York and Oxford – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
  2. "Corylus americana". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2018-07-23.
  3. "Corylus americana". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
  4. "Corylus americana". Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 2016-07-05.
  5. Coladonato, Milo (1993). "Corylus americana". Fire Effects Information System (FEIS). US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service (USFS), Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory – via https://www.feis-crs.org/feis/.
  6. Hilty, John (2016). "American Hazelnut (Corylus americana)". Illinois Wildflowers.
  7. Chayka, Katy; Dziuk, Peter (2016). "Corylus americana (American Hazelnut)". Minnesota Wildflowers.
  8. Furlow, John J. (1997). "Corylus". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). 3. New York and Oxford – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
  9. Elias, Thomas S.; Dykeman, Peter A. (2009) [1982]. Edible Wild Plants: A North American Field Guide to Over 200 Natural Foods. New York: Sterling. p. 173. ISBN 978-1-4027-6715-9. OCLC 244766414.
  10. Bailey, Liberty Hyde; Bailey, Ethel Zoe (1976). Hortus third : a concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada. New York: Macmillan. p. 479. ISBN 0-02-505470-8. OCLC 2513407.
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