Red Filbert Tree
Red Filbert, also known as Purple Hazel to its friends, is both a small ornamental tree and a nut-producing hazel. With an eventual height of around 4.5m / 15ft, it is well suited to smaller gardens where colour is just as important as cropping.
In spring, it produces attractive heart-shaped purple leaves, which gradually take on greener tones as the season moves into summer. The strongest purple colouring is usually achieved in a sunny position. In late winter, purple-tinged catkins add extra ornamental interest before the tree develops edible nuts towards the end of summer.
Red Filbert is mainly grown for its decorative purple foliage rather than as a heavy cropping hazel. A French supplier lists Cosford, Gunslebert, Longue d’Espagne and Impératrice Eugénie as suitable pollinisers, but this variety should not be chosen as the main nut-producing hazel if cropping is the priority.
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Planting Red Filbert Tree
Plant Red Filbert in sun or partial shade, in fertile, moist but well-drained soil. For the best purple leaf colour, choose a sunny position where the tree is not shaded for most of the day. Hazel will tolerate a range of soils, including chalky soil, but it should not be planted in ground that stays waterlogged.
Before planting, soak the rootball or bare roots thoroughly. Dig a hole wide enough for the roots to spread naturally, place the tree at the same depth it was growing before, then backfill with the loosened soil. Firm gently, water well, and keep the area around the base free from grass and weeds while the tree establishes.
Water regularly during dry spells in the first growing season. A mulch of well-rotted compost or bark around the base will help retain moisture and reduce weed competition, but keep mulch clear of the stem.
Red Filbert normally needs little pruning. Remove dead, damaged or crossing growth in winter, and cut out
