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Spice Bush and Witch Hazel
Nature Bulletin No. 341-A April 19, 1969
Forest Preserve District of Cook County
George W. Dunne, President
Roland F. Eisenbeis, Supt of Conservation
SPICE BUSH AND WITCH HAZEL
Two aromatic shrubs add cheery spots of color among our woodlands
when they are otherwise drab and bare. Both have long been used for
medicinal purposes. The Spice Bush or Benjamin Bush, which blooms
early in spring, bears clusters of tiny yellow flowers along its twigs and
these flowers have a spicy odor. Its bark has a piquant flavor. The
Witch Hazel bursts into an abundance of yellow bloom in October and
November when other shrubs and trees are shedding their foliage, its
own leaves are yellow and falling, and when its branches are still
laden with last year's fruit. Few woody plants are so "contrary".
The spice bush, also called Wild Allspice and Fever Bush, is scattered
throughout the eastern United States. It seems to prefer damp
woodlands or thickets in swampy ground, and sometimes reaches a
height of 15 feet. This and another American species, the Downy
Fever Bush which extends as far north as southern Illinois, are
members of the Laurel Family that includes such aromatic trees and
shrubs as sassafras, cinnamon, camphor, bay, avocado, and the true
laurel. During the Civil War, soldiers brewed tea from the leathery
leaves and the greenish rubbery twigs of the Benjamin bush. Oil of
benzoin, or "benjamin", was extracted from it for home remedies but
most commercial benzoin is now made from plants such as the sweet
gum tree, a relative of the witch hazel. Long ago, woodsmen learned
that spice bush is one of the few hardwoods which burn readily when
green. The little flowers lack petals but each has six lemon yellow
sepals and they are clumped in clusters which, with the fruit, make it
an ornamental shrub. The fruit, which ripens in autumn and clings on
through winter, is a bright red oval berry, rich in oil and highly
scented.
Witch Hazel, which may become a small tree 20 feet high, is found in
forest edges or along stream banks in the central and eastern United
States. It is numerous along the North Branch of the Chicago River in
our Harms Woods preserve, and in various parts of Illinois as far south
as Peoria. In northern regions it is the only native woody plant that
bears flowers and matures fruit at the same time. Of the three
American and three Asiatic species, the Chinese, Japanese and the
Vernal Witch Hazel of south central United States bloom during
January, February and March.
The common witch hazel has large oval leaves with wavy margins and
prominent veins, a queer sickle-shaped terminal bud, and peculiar
yellow flowers that appear in bright yellow clusters. Each has four
twisted ribbon-like petals which, before opening, are tightly coiled like
watch springs inside a bud no larger than a birdshot. Last year's nuts,
ripening at this same time, look like grotesque monkey faces with
staring eyes. When they pop open the two shiny black seeds may be
catapulted 30 feet away. From the Indians, who used the dry powdered
leaves to stop bleeding, the early settlers learned to distill all parts of
the plant and obtain an astringent for healing cuts, bruises, in-named
eyes and skin. Diluted with alcohol, it is still widely used by athletes
and as a lotion. For centuries, a forked twig of witch hazel has been
preferred as a divining rod by dowsers - persons supposedly gifted with
a mysterious power to locate underground water, precious metals, or
hidden treasures.
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Update: June 2012
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