When to plant and prune Witch Hazel
Witch Hazel flowers from mid December to late February and the dates below cover planting, flowering and the pruning window.
Planting, flowering and pruning by region
Witch Hazel is grown to the calendar rather than to the frost, so the same dates apply across the whole UK and every region below reads the same. Where a plant’s timings do follow the frost, Plot shifts them from the Midlands and Lowland Wales baseline using Met Office average frost dates.
| Where you are | Plant | In flower | Prune |
|---|---|---|---|
| South West Coast and Cornwall | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| South Coast and Channel | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Greater London (Urban Heat Island) | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| South East and Home Counties | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| East Anglia | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Midlands and Lowland Wales | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Wales and West Coast | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Northern England | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Scotland Lowlands and Central Belt | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Scotland Highlands and Islands | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Northern Ireland | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
| Channel Islands and Isle of Man | early October to late November | mid December to late February | late February to late March |
Growing notes
Fragrant spidery yellow, orange or red flowers on bare branches in the depths of winter, followed by good autumn leaf colour. Slow-growing but eventually a large spreading shrub, so allow for the spread. Plant between October and April, and site it where low winter sun can shine through the flowers.
At a glance
- Spacing
- 250 cm between plants
- Eventual height
- 300 cm
- Eventual spread
- 300 cm
- Hardiness
- H5
- Sun
- Full
- Frost tender
- No
- Grows in a container
- Yes, 60 litres or more
- Balcony rating
- 2 out of 5
Pruning: what to avoid
Keep pruning to a minimum and always do it after flowering. Watch for suckers from the Hamamelis virginiana rootstock - they hold their leaves later in autumn and will overwhelm the graft if left - and never bury the graft union when planting.
Pruning group
Minimal: after flowering remove dead, damaged, crossing or weak shoots; to restrict size cut the previous season's growth back to two leaf buds from the main stem
What usually goes wrong
- suckering from the rootstock
- phytophthora root rot
- honey fungus
- rabbit and deer damage
- vine weevil in containers
- powdery mildew
Related guides
Timings cross-checked against RHS guidance for witch hazel.