Red Hazelnuts – Have you ever seen these? To anticipate the answer after their existence: In fact, such varieties exist. But what exactly is red about them and what characteristics do the plants have?
What are the special features of red hazelnuts?
Red hazelnuts are special varieties such as the blood hazelnut and the red-leaved cellar nut, which are characterized by their red foliage, flowers and nut shells. They are attractive ornamental plants and can be harvested in September.
The blood hazelnut – bright dark red
The blood hazelnut is one of the red varieties of hazelnuts. It grows as a shrub and its foliage sprouts in a shiny red color. Depending on the location, the red turns into a dark red or dark purple, then turns into a rich green in midsummer.
In addition to its foliage, this red hazelnut has reddish flowers. The female flowers have a reddish style. The male catkin flowers are also colored red. Since they appear before the leaves between March and April, they skillfully attract attention with their bright red color.
But these were by no means all the red plant parts of the hazelnut. It also produces red or reddish-brown nuts. The nut shell and the fruit cup are colored red. The seeds inside, however, are brown as usual. The nuts of this variety can be harvested in September and are edible.
The red-leaved cellar nut – red as far as the eye can see
The red-leaved cellar nut is another red variety. It grows broadly upright, well branched and reaches a height of up to 5 m. Between February and March it presents long purple to dark red catkins. The flowers are not self-pollinating. Therefore, another variety should be planted near this plant in order to be able to harvest nuts later.
Later, the foliage of the red-leaved cellar nut, which forms a hazelnut bush, sprouts and shows the world a green color. The green changes to a dark red in sunny locations and to a bronze red in shady locations. In autumn it once again shows the courage to change and turns yellow to orange.
The fruits of this variety:
- are reddish in color, medium in size and tasty
- ripe between September and October
- together with the autumn leaves form a colorful picture
- lead to enormously high yields
Tips & Tricks
The foliage, flower and fruit color make the red hazelnut an attractive ornamental plant in a solitary position as well as a contrasting hedge plant.
