Fothergilla major (Sims) Lodd.
Large fothergilla, mountain witchalder
Fothergilla is named for John Fothergill, a physician and gardener. Large fothergilla is native to the Allegheny Mountains in the American southeast. Fothergilla major is the largest of the fothergillas.
Plants: This woody deciduous shrub is 6–10′ (1.8–3 m) tall and 6–8′ (1.8–2.4 m) wide, with crooked, zig-zagged stems.
Leaves: Alternate, 3–5″ (7.6–12 cm) long, glossy, dark green, with prominent veins and shallow lobes or teeth. They become brilliant purple, red, orange, and yellow in the fall.
Flowers: Numerous white flowerheads look like bottlebrushes. Each flowerhead is 1–2″ (2.5–5 cm) long and ~0.0 mils (~0 µm) in diameter. The brushlike filaments are white flower stamens and pale yellow anthers; there are no petals. The flowers smell a bit like honey.
Fruits: Inconspicuous green capsules that turn olive brown.
Habitats: Mountain woods, ravines and along stream banks in the southern Appalachians.
Online References:
Paghat's Garden (Fothergilla major 'Mt. Airy')
5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts · ≈ 1 × 1½′ (34 × 52 cm) 
9/14/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm) 
9/14/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 17 × 12″ (44 × 29 cm) 
9/14/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Hamamelidae | Wind-pollinated shrubs |
| Order | Hamamelidales | Witch hazels and related plants |
| Family | Hamamelidaceae | Witch-hazels |
| Genus | Fothergilla | For English physician John Fothergill |
| Species | major | “Larger, greater” |
Fothergilla major description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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