Witch hazel 'Arnold Promise'
Hamamelis x intermedia 'Arnold Promise' · Hamamelidaceae
Spidery, clear yellow, fragrant flowers cover the bare branches in late winter, and curl up to survive a frost. The leaves turn yellow and orange in autumn.
- Size
- 13 ft tall, 13 ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Early February to mid March
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around witch hazel 'Arnold Promise'
The planner designed this bed around witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' when this page was made: a 30 × 14 ft (9.1 × 4.3 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' × 1, yellow
- 2 Blue star creeper × 59, blue
- 3 Bloody cranesbill 'Max Frei' × 27, pink
- 4 Blue holly × 1, blue-green leaves
- 5 Brown-eyed Susan × 13, yellow
- 6 White mugwort × 4, cream
- 7 Bee balm 'Jacob Cline' × 4, red
- 8 Gray's sedge × 5, green
- 9 Japanese forest grass × 3, green leaves
- 10 Golden Alexanders × 11, yellow
- 11 Creeping phlox × 11, purple
- 12 Northern sea oats 'River Mist' × 3, green
- 13 Easter lily × 6, white
- 14 Turk's cap lily × 4, orange
- 15 Snowdrop × 19, white
Why this plant
- A classic partner for snowdrop. Both are on this plan. A pairing gardeners have proved outranks a general rule.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 13 ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to brown-eyed Susan (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for six weeks. From early February to mid March.
- Opens the season. For its first four weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 26 of the 29 groups (90%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. In winter there are still five kinds to look at, blue star creeper and blue holly among them. There is more blue star creeper than anything else, 59 plants in all.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 4 Good, 1 Satisfactory.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' goes in a border
At 13 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is super tall (over 6½ ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
A shrub to plant where it can be seen from the house in February, with the low sun behind it. Its wide vase shape leaves room underneath for snowdrops and hellebores.
- Flowers and scent in late winter
- A large specimen
- Underplanting with early bulbs
What to plant with witch hazel 'Arnold Promise'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Snowdrop: in flower together for two weeks, from early March; low enough (6 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Lenten rose: takes over when it finishes, flowering from late March; bold leaves against its medium ones; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it.
- Winter aconite: in flower together for four weeks, from late February; low enough (4 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about witch hazel 'Arnold Promise'
Does witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' need sun or shade?
Witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day), part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 8. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early February to mid March. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 5 | Early February to mid March |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Early February to early March |
| Zone 7 | Late January to early March |
| Zone 8 | Mid January to late February |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' be planted?
10 ft (300 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 13 ft (400 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 13 ft (400 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' plants do I need?
Usually one. At 10 ft (300 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 10 ft apart: two plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Is there a native plant like witch hazel 'Arnold Promise'?
Witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Vernal witch hazel: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 5 ft shorter, 20 in narrower.
- Spicebush: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 3½ ft shorter, 20 in narrower.
- Shadblow serviceberry: the same job in a bed; 3½ ft taller, flowers mid April to early May.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
What flowers after witch hazel 'Arnold Promise'?
Witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' is over by mid March. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Lenten rose: from late March to early May, 18 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems (a recorded partner).
- Forsythia: from late March to mid April, 8 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Japanese pieris: from late March to late April, 8 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' look like in winter?
Witch hazel 'Arnold Promise' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches: it is grown for flowers and scent in late winter. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
More Hamamelis
- Common witch hazel Hamamelis virginiana
- Vernal witch hazel Hamamelis vernalis
- Witch hazel 'Diane' Hamamelis x intermedia 'Diane'
- Witch hazel 'Jelena' Hamamelis x intermedia 'Jelena'
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 13 ft (400 cm) tall, 13 ft (400 cm) wide
- Plant
- 10 ft (300 cm) apart
- Height class
- Super tall (over 6½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Early February to mid March; yellow
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; green
- Shape
- Vase-shaped, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun, part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Hamamelidaceae
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.