# @ahs_gardening on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DSnPVxlEkhY
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/55035726-ahs-gardening-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/9432b8c5b5.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-12-23T16:44:16.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** American Horticultural Society | American Gardener Magazine (@ahs_gardening) — https://gondola.cc/ahs_gardening

## Caption

NATIVE PLANT OF THE WEEK⁠
Ozark Witchhazel — Hamamelis vernalis⁠
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When winter stretches long and landscapes feel quiet, there’s one native shrub that quietly defies the season: Ozark witchhazel (Hamamelis vernalis). This native of the gravelly streambanks of Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma bursts into fragrant bloom from January through March — well before most other plants wake up. ⁠
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🌿 At a Glance⁠
• Small clusters of spidery flowers with ribbon-like petals and a sweet-spicy scent that carry through the coldest months. ⁠

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• Reaches about 10–12 feet tall, with striking yellow fall foliage that often persists into winter. ⁠

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• Spreads by suckers and can form colonies — easy to manage if you remove unwanted shoots. ⁠

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🌱 Growing It⁠
• Thrives in full sun to part shade⁠
• Prefers moist soils but adapts to clay, dry, rocky, or even poorly drained sites⁠
• Minimal pest and disease issues; generally deer-resistant⁠
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🌼 Use in the Garden⁠
• Naturalized plantings⁠
• Rain gardens⁠
• Privacy hedges⁠
• Winter-interest landscapes⁠
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✨ Winter Bonus⁠
Bring branches indoors and force them into bloom to brighten cold days.⁠
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🪴 Good Native Companions⁠
Common ninebark | Buttonbush | Shrubby St. John’s Wort | Mistflower | Shining bluestar | Arkansas ironweed⁠
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Fun fact: This shrub’s flowers can curl up to protect themselves when temperatures plunge — a clever little survival trick. ⁠
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See more in our Native Plant of the Week series and explore the full feature at ahsgardening.org — link in bio. Tag and tell us where you’ve planted yours.⁠
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📸 Photos by Matt Tomlinson, Robert Langellier, august_ge (iNaturalist), and Purdue Arboretum⁠
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#nativeplant #ozarkwitchhazel #Hamamelisvernalis #winterblooms #nativeplants #plantsofinstagram #gardeninspiration #americangardener #ahsgardening #americanhorticulturalsociety #gardenplants #winterinterest

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## Tags

americanhorticulturalsociety, nativeplants, nativeplant, americangardener, gardenplants, gardeninspiration, plantsofinstagram, hamamelisvernalis, ahsgardening, winterblooms, winterinterest, ozarkwitchhazel

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