er hazelnuts or filberts could not be grown
commercially in Virginia. It has been suggested that if varieties now
available are not successfull in Virginia, perhaps new varieties may be
originated by crossing, including inter-specific crosses.

+American Species+

AMERICAN HAZEL. As mentioned, one species, _Corylus americana_ Walt., is
native to much of Virginia. Its distribution is from the northeastern
states and Canada to Saskatchewan and the Dakotas and south to Florida
and the Gulf of Mexico. Its adaptation is much wider than that of the
beaked hazels (_C. cornuta_ Marsh or _C. roxtrata_ Ait. and the far
western _C. californica_) the two other Corylus species native to the
United States and Canada. This native _americana_, species appears at
least to have value from the point of view of soil conservation, as food
for wild life, and for breeding purposes.

The American hazel is a large thicket-forming shrub, which sprouts very
freely after cutting, and the foliage is generally dense. It is found
growing on dry, well-drained sites, in both sun and shade. It, however,
seldom bears fruit in the shade. The shrub is relatively hardy,
withstanding mid-winter temperatures of -40 deg. to -30 deg.F. and is easily
transplanted.

The nuts are available in the wild from July through September and
occasionally persistent on the plant until December or even February.
The nuts average about 250 per pound, with a germination of about 80
percent, producing about 60 usable plants per pound of seed.

Three of the best known varieties of _C. americana_ are the Rush from
Pennsylvania, the Littlepage from Indiana, and the Winkler (most hardy)
from Iowa. [See footnote following.--Ed.][19]

Incidentally, Thomas Jefferson in his list of plants native to Virginia,
as published in his _Notes on the State of Virginia_, which was written
in 1781, and published in 1782, in 1784-1785, and in 1787, lists among
other plants the "Hazelnut (_Corylus Avellana_)", which apparently
should have been called _Corylus americana_ Walters.

_Breeding Filberts in the East._ This brings up the question of filbert
breeding in the East. Crane and Wood (1937) have fully reviewed the
breeding program with filberts, and the breeding of filberts, for the
East may be briefly referred to here. Tho pollen from _C. californica_
and _C. americana_ apparently does not function on the pistillate
flowers of European varieties, (_Corylus avellana_ L. and _C. maxima_)