A Winter Wildflower: Vernal Witchhazel

The first blooms outdoors each year at Powell Gardens are those of the Vernal Witchhazel (Hamamelis vernalis). This shrub is endemic (found no where else) to the Ozarks and Ouchitas so is found wild only in Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma. If only we could add its delightful scent to these images! It is by far the most fragrant witchhazel with a pseudo-gingerbread scent. The tiny, spidery flowers are often found by your nose before you see them. We owe their existence to winter flying Noctuid moths, which pollinate them on warm winter evenings and locate them by their delicious scent.


The Vernal Witchhazel's flowers vary in color from almost yellow through shades of orange to almost purple-red. They regularly bloom for us during warm spells from January to March. One of our plants has bloomed as early as Christmas, but always after the winter solstice. The flowers are amazing in that when a cold snap occurs the petals simply roll up! They can survive temperatures colder than -10F in such a state and actually they are on their third bloom at Powell Gardens! No other witchhazel can withstand these extreme weather changes of the Heartland. Hybrid witchhazels (Hamamelis x intermedia) have showier flowers but they are less fragrant and are occasionally damaged by cold snaps during bloom. Last year's Easter Freeze was devastating to our hybrid witchhazels but the native vernal species was unscathed.


Look for Vernal Witchhazels in the Rock & Waterfall Garden during our winter warmups. Today's 72F brought them back out (they bloomed in both our 60F+ warmups in January). We will keep you posted as their companion plants are beginning to stir and bring life and bloom back to the Rock & Waterfall Garden. For those with spring fever, our Rock & Waterfall Garden is an essential visit. Vernal Witchhazels are readily available at local nurseries.

Photos taken by Alan Branhagen on February 4, 2008, in the Rock & Waterfall Garden at Powell Gardens.

January Statistics

A January view of the Visitor Education Center's Conservatory shows part of our evergreen beds and just a patch of snow. We have an official weather station at Powell Gardens and statistics for January show an "average" month. In true manic-depressive Kansas City weather style, there was a 67 degree range from high to low! January 2008's high temperature was 67F on January 7 and 8; the low was 0F on Jan. 20, 24, and 25.

There were four days with high temperatures in the 60s; five days in the 50s; four days in the 40s; 12 days in the 30s and five days in the 20s. (We had no recording on Jan. 1).
We received 1.44 inches of precipitation, which included 2.3 inches of snow.

We welcomed 497 visitors who enjoyed the grounds and Visitor Center displays in January 2008 (twice last year's numbers). In February we should have our first blooms outdoors but even now is a great time for a winter garden stroll to see the beautiful "bones" of the garden. Stay tuned and come out and visit!

Elegant Silvers in Winter Perennials

This photo from the Island Garden depicts three of the finest perennials with elegant silver foliage in the winter landscape. They are growing in the living wall: Santolina Santolina chamaecyparissus (foreground), Silver Frost Lavender Lavandula 'Silver Frost' (middle plant) and Dwarf Horehound Ballota pseudocictamnus 'Nana' behind. Each has a different subtle shade and unique texture so they create quite a pleasant composition when grown together. All need full sun and good drainage! Our most successful santolinas originated from a special zone 5 hardy strain from High Country Gardens http://www.highcountrygardens.com/ in Santa Fe, NM. The Silver Frost Lavender is another specialty plant from High Country Gardens. Dwarf Horehound is more readily available.


Here is a closeup of a young Silver Frost Lavender in the living wall. No other lavender is so silvery!


The rare Partridge Feather or Silver Feather Tansy Tanacetum densum ssp. amanum has some of the most beautifully textured foliage of any plant at Powell Gardens. We trialed it from Siskiyou Rare Plant Nursery http://www.siskiyourareplantnursery.com/ in Talent, Ore. It has been successful in a place of good air circulation in the living wall for years!


The evergreen, needle-like tuft of foliage of Firewitch Dianthus Dianthus gratianopolitanus 'Feuerhexe' make it an outstanding plant when not in bloom. In late spring it is covered with vivid fuchsia flowers. It was Perennial Plant of the Year in 2006 and is now a Plant of Merit for our region.


The silvered, purple leaves of Regina Coralbells Heuchera 'Regina' are some of the best for hardiness and durability! This coralbell has staying power and its "evergreen" leaves are beautifully contrasted when grown among Angelina Sedum Sedum rupestre 'Angelina' as can be seen growing on the Island Garden.

Read the book Elegant Silvers by Jo Ann Gardner and Karen Bussolini (Timber Press 2005) for more ideas with silver plants.

All photos were taken by Alan Branhagen in January 2008 at Powell Gardens.