Botanical Name: Hamamelis virginiana. The English common name derives from the Anglo-Saxon word for flexible, 'wytch', because of the Native Americans’ uses of witch hazel for making bows. Other Common Names: Hazel nut, snapping hazel, tobacco wood, hamamelis water, spotted alder and winterbloom. Habitat: Witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) prefers northern-facing slopes, river banks, fences, and other places with shade and well-drained soil. This plant ranges all over the lower 48 states of…