Wayward Water & Wishful Washing- Witch Hazel
Hello and welcome back to another episode of Rooted! This week we are digging into witch hazel- an otherworldly looking shrub you might have seen on chilly hikes and cosmetic isles alike.
Witch hazel, or Hamamelidaceae,is a family of flowering deciduous shrub native to North America. Its best known for it’s spidery looking blooms that fill the landscape with shocks of bright yellow in the dull and dreary days of late autumn. While it’s certainly unusual to bloom in the fall, that’s not the only thing that makes this plant a bit of a freak.
It doesn’t just bloom in the fall, but also goes to seed- making it one of the only plants out there to do both at the same time. And when Witch hazel DOES decide to spread it’s seed, it doesn't just sprinkle them delicately across the landscape or rely on the poop of feathered friends. Instead, it shoots them out in an explosion of seed-fueled fury, launching those suckers a good thirty feet away…impressive range for a fairly delicate and haggard looking shrub.
When it’s not in bloom, witch hazel is best known for it’s pale brown stems and deep green leaves. It has a spread of out 5x5, and is primarily found across the Appalachian range of the United States.
They grow best in bright, sunny spots with plenty of nutrient dense soil and water- making the Appalachian mountain range it’s perfect home, though it has since spread globally.
As far as folklore goes, the potawatomi people don’t have many legends about it, but they DID use it as a powerful resource and ally when it came to finding water.
In fact, the name “Witch Hazel” originates from “water wythcing” or the process of finding water using spry, y-shaped stickers and twigs. Before we used those long metal rods, ingenious peoples often turned to the twigs of witch hazel and willow to find water- the dea being that these plants are naturally drawn to water, so by listening to the subtle signs and pulls of the branches, they will guide you to the water they are bending toward.
This is actually a pretty tricky process, that requires a very specific attention to detail and a very steady hand- but with a little practice, folks do continue to find success with this method, though thankfully technology and maps have made it all much easier!
Outside of it’s role in finding water, witch hazel has also long been relied on for helping to heal the skin and some internal ailments.
Often the potawatomi and other indigenous cultures would make witch hazel into a sort of poultice or steep into a tea that could be applied topically to cuts, scrapes, bruises, and rashes or legions to help disinfect and sooth. In some instances, this tea would also be drank to help with some tummy troubles, though most typically it has been recorded for topical and external use.
Today, most of the witch hazel you can buy at the store is also meant for strictly external use. This is because the witch hazel products most commonly available are distilled using a high concentration isopropyl alcohol, which helps it to last longer, and ups the anti a bit when it comes to the antibacterial qualities.
When people forage their own witch hazel, it’s a bit more typical for them to use just water if they want to use it quickly, or to add in high proof vodka if they want to make a tincture. It tends to be a little less drying this way, and is then safe for internal or external use.
No matter if you’re making it yourself, or buying it at the store, witch hazel is a great thing to have on hand for skin care, wound care, and even cleaning!
This is because the tannins in witch hazel help to clean wounds, kill any lingering bacteria on the skin and stop bleeding, while the procyanidins, catechins, and flavonols all help with reducing inflammation and have even been shown to help fight hemorrhoids and even colon cancer in some preliminary studies.
Wherever you see it, the next time you run into witch hazel, I hope you'll take a moment to stop and appreciate the interesting ways it’s supported us through history, and continues to improve our lives today!
Sources:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19035659/
https://www.americandistilling.com/witch-hazel-usp-specification/
https://practicalselfreliance.com/witch-hazel-extract/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19035659/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch-hazel
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9220085/
https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/hamamelis_virginiana.shtml
