American hazel Betulaceae Corylus americana Walter symbol: COAM3 Leaf: Alternate, simple, with a doubly serrated margin, broadly oval with a heart-shaped or rounded base, dark green above and paler below, 2 1/2 to 5 inches in length, petiole with stiff, glandular hairs. Flower: Species is monoecious; males are light brown 1 to 3 inch catkins, in clusters of two or three near branch tips, opening before leaves; females are inconspicuous with only bright red stigma and styles protruding from the otherwise gray-brown buds, appearing as short, thin, red threads, early spring. Fruit: Edible brown nuts (1/2 inch diameter) enclosed in a hairy, leaf-like husk with ragged edges; initially green, ripening to a brown in late summer. Twig: Slender, zigzag, light brown, with numerous stiff, red-glandular hairs; buds blunt, small with few scales, two-toned, light grayish brown with scales near base being darker brown. Bark: Light grayish brown and smooth, later develops a mild criss-cross netted pattern Form: Small shrub, often in clumps reaching 12 feet in height. Looks like: beaked hazel - hazel alder - hophornbeam - common filbert Additional Range Information: Corylus americana is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. See states reporting American hazel. More: Fall Color External Links: USDAFS Additional Silvics USDA Plants Database Horticulture © Copyright 2014, Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, all rights reserved. Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson