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American hazelnut (Corylus americana Walter)

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Summary
Range
Habitat
Uses
Relatives
Links

↑Summary

A deciduous shrub, native to North America, closely related to the familiar species used to produce the hazelnuts we eat.

↑Range - Expand

Legend	Color
Native
Native or Not Present

This tentative map is based on our own research. It may have limited data on Canada and/or Mexico, and there is some subjectivity in our assignment of plants as introduced vs. expanded. Read more in this blog post.

Although this plant occurs somewhere in each of these regions, it may only occur in a small part of some or all of them.

↑Habitat

Prefers full sun but can tolerate light shade. Fairly adaptable about moisture conditions and soil types.

↑Uses

The nuts of the American hazelnut are edible, nutritious, and naturally taste quite sweet, but are smaller than those of other species which are most commonly cultivated.

This plant is occasionally cultivated as a landscaping plant.

The native Corylus cornuta overlaps somewhat with this species, although it has a more northerly distribution and occurs mostly in the Appalachians in the south of its range.

The introduced Corylus avellana, or common filbert, one of the main cultivated species, has become established in the wild on a few sites across North America.