Well, I was correct about one thing in yesterday’s post. I did not find an actual Ozark Witch Hazel plant. I know that now because I found quite a few of them today.
At our regular morning bull session, I mentioned to Mike Gossett (the park’s Aquatic Biologist and my former high school science teacher) about my attempt to find a blooming witch hazel yesterday and, happily, he knew exactly where to find one. A few years ago, he had planted several plants just upstream from the Big Spring boat landing as part of an erosion control project. And Big Spring is only 4 miles away!
Lunchtime found me at the boat landing and, sure enough, there was a sizable population of witch hazel precisely where he said they’d be.
All of those shorter plants in the center of the photo that still have leaves are Witch Hazel. And all of them were in bloom. Each plant had numerous flowers, in singles and groups, and their color ranged all the way from dark purplish-red through orange and yellow.
Now I just need to locate an Eastern Witch Hazel so I can photograph it in flower this fall.