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Betulaceae FAMILY Data Deficient

Corylus maxima

Corylus maxima

Edibility
5/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Shrub
Growth—

Corylus maxima is a very cold-hardy plant, grown through much of the temperate zone and able to tolerate winter temperatures down to around -25°c when fully dormant. The flowers, however, are produced in late winter and early spring and can be damaged by heavy frosts at this time[1]. An easily grown plant, it succeeds in most soils, but is in general more productive of seeds when grown on soils of moderate fertility[2, 1]. It does less well in rich heavy soils or poor ones[2, 3]. Does well in a loamy soil[2]. Very suitable for an alkaline soil[2], but it dislikes very acid soils[4]. Plants are fairly wind tolerant[5, 2]. A very hardy plant but the male flowers can be damaged by heavy frosts at flowering time[1]. The filbert is often cultivated for its edible seeds[6], there are many named varieties[3]. It has often been hybridized with Corylus avellana in breeding programmes[2]. Plants are self-fertile but a more certain crop is obtained if more than one cultivar is grown[1]. The main difference between cob nuts and filberts is that the husk of a filbert is longer than the seed and often completely encloses it, whilst the husk on a cob nut is shorter than the seed[1]. Squirrels are a major pest of this plant, often decimating the crop of nuts[1]. Members of this genus bear transplanting well and can be easily moved even when relatively large[2].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is harvested in autumn in a cold frame[7]. Germinates in late winter or spring. Stored seed should be pre-soaked in warm water for 48 hours and then given 2 weeks warm followed by 3 - 4 months cold stratification[7]. Germinates in 1 - 6 months at 20°c[7]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame or sheltered place outdoors for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer[PFAF]. Layering in autumn. Easy, it takes about 6 months[8, 1]. Division of suckers in early spring. Very easy, they can be planted out straight into their permanent positions. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Corylus+maxima>

Pollinators

Wind

References

  1. [1]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  2. [2]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  3. [3]Nuts. — Howes. F. N. · Faber · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎Rather old but still a masterpiece. Has sections on tropical and temperate plants with edible nuts plus a section on nut plants in Britain. Very readable.
  4. [4]Flora of the British Isles. — Clapham, Tutin and Warburg. · Cambridge University Press · 1962 · ISBN - ↩︎A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
  5. [5]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  6. [6]Flora Europaea — ? · Cambridge University Press · 1964 · ISBN - ↩︎An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for Europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.
  7. [7]Growing from Seed. Volume 4. — Bird. R. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1990 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.
  8. [8]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  9. [9]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  10. [10]Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. — Polunin. O. · Oxford University Press · 1969 · ISBN 0192176218 ↩︎An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.
  11. [11]Alternative Foods. — Sholto-Douglas. J. ↩︎Not very comprehensive, it seems more or less like a copy of earlier writings with little added.
  12. [12]The Oxford Book of Food Plants. — Harrison. S. Wallis. M. Masefield. G. · Oxford University Press · 1975 · ISBN - ↩︎Good drawings of some of the more common food plants from around the world. Not much information though.
  13. [13]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  14. [14]Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World. — Tanaka. T. & Nakao S. · Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo · 1976 · ISBN - ↩︎The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
  15. [15]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  16. [16]Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. — Triska. Dr. · Hamlyn · 1975 · ISBN 0-600-33545-3 ↩︎Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.
  17. [17]Plants for Man. — Schery. R. W. ↩︎Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
  18. [18]Fruits of the Earth. — Bianchini. F., Corbetta. F. and Pistoia. M. ↩︎Lovely pictures, a very readable book.
  19. [19]Plants with a Purpose. — Mabey. R. · Fontana · 1979 · ISBN 0-00-635555-2 ↩︎Details on some of the useful wild plants of Britain. Poor on pictures but otherwise very good.
  20. [20]Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. — Chiej. R. · MacDonald · 1984 · ISBN 0-356-10541-5 ↩︎Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
  21. [21]Complete Book of Baskets and Basketry. — Wright. D. · David & Charles; Newton Abbot. · 1977 · ISBN 0-7153-7449-4 ↩︎Not that complete but very readable and well illustrated.
  22. [22]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  23. [23]From Agar to Zenery. — Freethy. R. · The Crowood Press · 1985 · ISBN 0-946284-51-2 ↩︎Very readable, giving details on plant uses based on the authors own experiences.
  24. [24]The Plantsman. Vol. 5. 1983 - 1984. — ? · Royal Horticultural Society · 1983 · ISBN - ↩︎Excerpts from the periodical giving cultivation details and other notes on some of the useful plants.
  25. [25]Edible Wild Fruits and Nuts of Canada. — Turner. N. J. and Szczawinski. A. · National Museum of Natural Sciences · 1978 · ISBN - ↩︎A very readable guide to some wild foods of Canada.
  26. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎