‘Little Prospect’ Witch Hazel

Hamamelis virginiana ‘Little Prospect’

Plant Details

USDA Plant Hardiness Zones: 3a-8b Find Your Zone

Plant Type: Deciduous Flowering Shrub or Small Tree

Height at Maturity: 8-10′

Width at Maturity: 6-8′

Spacing: 12’+ for space between plants

Growth Habit / Form: Upright

Growth Rate: Moderate

Flower Color: Yellow

Flower Size: 1.5″

Flowering Period: October to December

Flower Type: Fringe

Fragrant Flowers: Yes

Foliage Color: Variegated Dark Green edged in Yellow

Fragrant Foliage: No

Berries: No

Berry Color: NA

Sun Needs: Full Sun or Mostly Sun, Morning Sun with Dappled or Afternoon Shade, Morning Shade with Evening Sun

Water Needs: Average

Soil Type: Clay (Amend heavy clay to ensure good drainage), Loam, Sandy (amend to retain moisture), Silt

Soil Moisture / Drainage: Moist But Well-Drained

Soil pH: 5.0 – 7.5 (Acid to Moderately Alkaline)

Maintenance / Care: Very Low

Attracts: Visual Attention, Beneficial Pollinators

Resistances: Deer, Disease, Humidity, Insects

Description

Every once in a while a plant comes along that just blows us away and is a must-add to our garden. Little Prospect Witch Hazel, an American native flowering shrub, did just that. It is a truly extraordinary plant discovered as a branch sport by Robert Wilkinson of Walnut Hill Farms Nursery in Tennessee. This one wows with not only unique and pretty flowers, but also highly colorful variegated leaves in gold with dark green centers. The foliage color has stood up well in full sun, with no burning, even in the hot South. After the leaves drop in fall the abundant fragrant lemon yellow fringe-flowers take the stage, usually sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving when there’s not that much else blooming in the garden other than Camellia sasanqua, fall garden mums and a few other late-season bloomers. We suggest planting this one against a dark background, which really helps to show off both the foliage and flowers. Exceptionally cold hardy to -40F and heat hardy to Zone 8.

Landscape & Garden Uses

Growing 8 to 10 feet tall and 6 to 8 feet wide, the Little Prospect Witch Hazel can be grown as a shrub or remove lower branches to form a small tree. Either way, it is ideal for use as a colorful focal point specimen in landscape borders, home foundation plantings, and around patios, decks, porches and other outdoor living spaces where the fragrance and foliage can be enjoyed from up close . A fine addition to yellow theme gardens, native plant gardens, and cottage gardens.

Suggested Spacing: 12 feet or more apart for space between plants

Growing Preferences

The Little Prospect Witch Hazel is very easy to grow in most any moist but well well-drained soil of average fertility in full sun to part shade. It prefers a consistently moist and acidic soil rich in organic matter but also grows well in heavy clay soils. Best flowering comes with at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day. Little pruning is required but responds well to it for shaping or tree forming.

Helpful Articles

Plant and care for as you would Loropetalum shrubs.

How To Plant A Loropetalum Shrub

How To Fertilize & Water A Loropetalum Shrub

Plant Long & Prosper!

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Questions? Contact Us

I bought this plant in dormancy. It arrived quickly and was well packaged. The plant looks healthy. There are a lot of tight buds and the stems are supple. There were even a few fading flowers. I’m looking forward to spring. I only buy native plants and some cultivars. I’m excited by the prospect of this plant which is now part of a border with winterberry, several species of viburnums, alternate leaf dogwood and black chokeberry———————————————————–I love natives too!! We are so glad you are pleased and we hope you enjoy it for years to come! Thanks for the kind words and great review! 🙂 Beth Steele | WBG