Hazel
Family Betulaceae
Corylus avellana, the hazel (C. avellana 1), is a stout monoecious shrub, up to 7 m high, with simple alternating leaves, native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The male flowers are borne in catkins, up to 7 cm long, with bright yellow anthers; the female ones in short bud-like spikes with crimson styles. The fruit is a nut, 1-2 cm large, with a hard brown shell, partly enclosed by a deeply lobed husk (C. avellana 2). The tree starts bearing fruits when about 6 years old and continues for 50 years or more.
Use
The edible part is the seed. These may be eaten fresh, dried or roasted, or added entire or ground to biscuits, chocolate and pastries. Hazelnuts were collected for food in prehistoric times, they are mentioned by the ancient Greek and Romans.
The closely related Corylus maxima, the filbert, resembles the hazel closely, but is more robust with nuts that are more oblong in shape and with a husk that extends well beyond the nut.