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NC Native Plant Society:
Plant Details

Fothergilla major

Large Witch-alder, Mountain Witch-alder, Tall Fothergilla

Scientific Name:

Fothergilla major

Genus:

Fothergilla

Species Epithet:

major

Common Name:

Large Witch-alder, Mountain Witch-alder, Tall Fothergilla

Plant Type

Shrub

Life Cycle

Perennial

Plant Family

Hamamelidaceae (Witch-Hazel Family)

Native/Alien:

NC Native

Invasive Status:

(*Key)

Size:

6-12 ft.

Bloom Color(s):

White

Light:

Sun - 6 or more hours of sun per day, Part Shade - 2 to 6 hours of sun per day

Soil Moisture:

Dry, Moist

Bloom Time:

April, May

Growing Area:

Mountains, Piedmont

Habitat Description:

Dry ridgetop forests of middle elevation ridges in the mountains, especially along the Blue Ridge Escarpment, summits and upper slopes of Piedmont monadnocks, north-facing bluffs and along small streams in the lower Piedmont. Rare in NC mountains and piedmont.

Leaf Arrangement:

Alternate

Leaf Retention:

Deciduous

Leaf Type:

Leaves veined, not needle-like or scale-like

Leaf Form:

Simple

Life Cycle:

Perennial

Wildlife Value:

Has some wildlife value

Landscape Value:

Highly Recommended and Available

State Rank:

S3: Vulnerable (*Key)

Global Rank:

G3 - Vulnerable (*Key)

State Status:

SR-T: Significantly Rare: Throughout (*Key)

Notes:

Colonial. Great fall color. Cultivars available; hard to find the straight species in the nursery trade.

Brushlike flowers bloom at the tips of the twigs

Cultivar 'Mt Airy', Forsyth County NC (yard)

The Scientific Name is Fothergilla major. You will likely hear them called Large Witch-alder, Mountain Witch-alder, Tall Fothergilla. This picture shows the Brushlike flowers bloom at the tips of the twigs of Fothergilla major

Lisa Lofland Gould

Fall foliage color ranges from yellow to deep orange to red

Cultivar 'Mt Airy', Forsyth County NC (yard)

The Scientific Name is Fothergilla major. You will likely hear them called Large Witch-alder, Mountain Witch-alder, Tall Fothergilla. This picture shows the Fall foliage color ranges from yellow to deep orange to red of Fothergilla major

Lisa Lofland Gould

Links:

USDA PLANTS Database Record

https://auth1.dpr.ncparks.gov/flora/species_account.php

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/fothergilla-latifolia/common-name/large-fothergilla/

https://nc.audubon.org/700



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