How do you recognise Common hazel (Corylus avellana)?

Leaf

Pierre Bonnet, Tela Botanica · CC BY-SA 2.0

Common hazel

Corylus avellana L.

Also known as: Hazel, European hazel

Family: Betulaceae

3 to 7 m tall

Hedgerows, light woodland, woodland edges

Flowering: January – March, before the leaves

Full sun

Part shade

Shade

Hardy to -15°C

❓ How do you recognise this plant?

Flowers as early as January, well before the leaves — the yellow catkins are one of the first signs of spring. The cultivated filbert produces much larger, more elongated nuts than the wild common hazel, whose fruit is smaller and round.

🍃 Leaves

Round, heart-shaped base, doubly toothed, rough surface

🌸 Flowers

Long pendent yellow male catkins, tiny red female flowers

🍎 Fruits

Hazelnuts in clusters of 2 or 3, surrounded by a leafy husk

🪵 Bark

Light brown, smooth, peeling in thin horizontal strips

🗺️ Distribution

Europe, western Asia; very common in France in hedgerows and woodland

🐝 Value for pollinators

Very early male catkins (from January), an essential pollen source for bees in late winter

✂️ Horticultural uses

Widely used in country and hedgerow planting, grown in orchards for its fruit (hazelnuts)

⚠️ Possible toxicity

No known toxicity; allergenic pollen

⚠️ Look-alike species

Common hazel

Corylus avellana

Giant filbert

Corylus maxima

The cultivated filbert produces much larger, more elongated nuts than the wild common hazel, whose fruit is smaller and round.

🌿 Other Betulaceae to discover

ℹ️ Educational profile — do not use it to judge whether a plant is edible or safe.

🌱 This database is constantly evolving — species and information are added and corrected regularly. Spotted a mistake? Report it below.