Search Fact Sheets Virginia Tech Dendrology

hazel alder Betulaceae Alnus serrulata (Aiton) Willd. Listen to the Latin Print a QR link to this factsheet play symbol: ALSE2
Leaf: Alternate, simple, obovate to elliptical, 2 to 4 inches long, pinnately-veined, finely serrated wavy margin, dark green above, paler and finely hairy beneath.
Flower: Species is monoecious; both males and females preformed; males green brown catkins, 1 to 1 1/2 inches; female 1/2 inch long, reddish, opening in early spring.
Fruit: Woody, cone like catkin, 1/2 inch long, dark brown with each scale enclosing a tiny, winged seed. Fruit ripens in fall and is very persistant.
Twig: Reddish brown with gray fuzz, 3-angled pith; buds are stalked, plump, covered in 2 to 3 red-purple scales, resemble a match head.
Bark: Thin, gray to brown and smooth, trunk fluted.
Form: A multi-stemmed small tree or large shrub with several twisted stems reaching up to 15 feet tall.
 Looks like: speckled alder - European black alder - beaked hazel - hornbeam

hazel alder leaf image
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hazel alder bark image
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Additional Range Information: Alnus serrulata is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database - USDAFS Forest Products Lab
All material 2025 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information