Hazel; Hazelnuts, Filberts, & Cobnuts.
by Lewis, 6 March, 2020, 0 comments
Hazels belong to the genus - Corylus, which in turn belongs to the Betulaceae [the birch family]. There are a number of different species within the genus Corylus and a variety of cultivars. The common or European Hazel is named C.avellana; after the Italian town of Avella. In the past, the hazel was much grown for coppice, indeed in 1905 it is thought that there were some half a million acres of hazel coppice (Mabberley's Plant Book, 3rd Edition 2008). Its wood / poles was used in the making of hurdles, legume poles, wattle and daub. Hazel was also much favoured as a rod for water divining.
The hazel was also a source of hazelnuts - the fruit of the tree. The flowers are produced early in the year in the form of long catkins - the male flowers (see image below). The female flowers are small, red, ‘bud-like’ structures (image below). The redness being largely due to the protruding styles (which receive the pollen). Pollination is anemophilous - i.e. by the wind. Read more...
