Dwarf Fothergilla
Fothergilla gardenii

Family: Hamamelidaceae (Witch hazel family)
Genus: Fothergilla
Species: gardenii

Fothergilla. Isn’t that an interesting name? The deciduous shrub it’s attached to is just as interesting. It will appeal particularly to gardeners who are fond of witch hazels. The family resemblance is strong in the only two members of this genus, F. major and F. gardenii, both native to the southeastern part of the United States. Don’t let their geographical origins mislead you, however. The Fothergillas are perfectly hardy here in the Pacific Northwest, and admirably suited to the climate and growing conditions in our region.

F. major, as its name indicates, is the larger of the two, reaching ten feet in both height and width. F. gardenii grows slowly to a maximum of three feet, a size well suited to the home landscape. It is upright when young and slowly matures into a globular shape. Not unlike the human I see in my mirror, come to think of it….

Both species offer fragrant white flowers that emerge in late April and early May, before the leaves open. The flowers are small and green, nestled at the ends of the branches. The real show comes from their filament-like stamens, as much as two inches long, tipped with yellow anthers and clustered in “bottle-brushes” that can be an inch or more wide. The three-inch leaves that follow are bronze as they unfurl, opening finally in hues of deep green that offer a comforting presence in the summer garden. In the fall, both species offer an amazingly wide spectrum of colors, with shades of green, yellow, orange, pink, violet, and scarlet on the same plant simultaneously, often with several colors on the same leaf. Fall foliage colors are most showy when the plant is in full sun, although they also appear when it is shaded. The fall color is said to be particularly vibrant in F. major, and a smaller cultivar, ‘Mt. Airy’, is available. It can tend to brushiness, however, and it suckers more freely than the naturally smaller F. gardenii. To add to the confusion, ‘Mount Airy’ is sometimes labeled as a cultivar of F. gardenii and appears to be the most widely available of all the Fothergillas at retail centers. The most common cultivar of F. gardenii is ‘Blue Mist’, which offers very pleasing blue-green leaves, but only at the expense of some fall color. The species form of F. gardenii offers the best combination of attributes, and is well worth seeking out.

All Fothergillas do best in rich, consistently moist, slightly acid soils, in either sun or shade. If placed in a shady location, they will even adapt to dry soil that is neutral or even slightly alkaline. They coexist nicely with rhododendrons and azaleas, kalmia, leucothoe, and pieris, in appearance as well as cultural requirements. And they are very easy to care for. Like most members of the witch hazel family, they seem to be immune to most pests and diseases. Pruning is neither required nor recommended, lest the grace of the Fothergillas’ natural shape be interfered with. They are attractive enough to use as a single specimen or combined in a free-form hedge. They are easy to look at even in winter, when their twiggy branches show gray-to-tan, making them good candidates for prominent placement, even right by the front door. This year-round interest as well as a compact growth habit, lovely flowers, and ease of care are the attributes that place F. gardenii at the top of the class and make it a candidate for “most well behaved” in the small-shrub department.

And that interesting name? The genus honors the English physician John Fothergill, who aside from his affinity for plants contributed much to the body of medical knowledge in the 18th century. The species gardenii is named for Dr. Alexander Garden, a Scots physician and botanist who lived in South Carolina and was instrumental in introducing a great many new-world plants to Europe. The story of why this genus was not named for him, and why another eventually was, would require another column’s worth of space. It is a tale that features Linneaus and his particular opinions about which plants were most important and whose contributions, most worthy. The genus that immortalizes Dr. Garden is native to the tropics rather than to his beloved but adopted home. In fact, Dr. Garden didn’t even see it until he returned to London shortly before his death. It was the genus Gardenia that was displayed at his funeral, not the bottlebrush from the American South that even Mr. Jefferson assumed would be named for the Scotsman from Carolina. Dr. Garden did much to spread the news of the diversity and usefulness of plants from America; and while he certainly admired the Gardenia, I feel sure it would give him pleasure to know that his name is associated, albeit in a minor position, with one of the special plants native to this continent, where so much of his botanical work took place.