Male Japanese skimmias like 'Rubella' keep their flower buds all winter. In some cultivars the buds are maroon and white and extremely attractive. Beaded clusters form. Naked, the witchhazel shows off its widespreading, crooked branches and multistemmed, shrubby habit. The rounded oval, scalloped-edged leaves are dark green, three to six inches long.
Foliage is colorful in all witchhazels.
You can also find cultivars of H. virginiana that drop their leaves before the flowers form. Still, one whiff of this heady aroma in the middle of winter will make you want to try this shrub. Fragrant flowers tinted with rosy-purple begin appearing in January or February and last for many weeks. Red berries form. Variegated foliage provides interest in all seasons.