The Corylaceae, or the hazel family, is a small family of four genera of trees and shrubs, including the hazels, the hornbeams and the hop-hornbeams. They are all natives of the temperate Northern Hemisphere.

Some botanists, including the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group include the Corylaceae within the closely related Betulaceae, but others treat it as distinct, including the Kew checklist of the Fagales.

The four genera, with some example species, are:

• Carpinus - hornbeams
  • European Hornbeam, Carpinus betulus
  • American Hornbeam, Carpinus caroliniana
• Corylus - hazels
  • Common Hazel, Corylus avellana
  • Filbert, Corylus maxima
  • Turkish Hazel, Corylus colurna
• Ostrya - hop-hornbeams
  • European Hop-hornbeam, Ostrya carpinifolia
  • American Hop-hornbeam, Ostrya virginiana
• Ostryopsis - hazel-hornbeams
  • Ostryopsis davidiana

Uses

The Common Hazel Corylus avellana and the Filbert Corylus maxima are important orchard plants, grown for their edible nuts. The other species include a number of popular ornamental trees, widely planted in parks and large gardens. The wood is generally hard, tough and heavy; several species were of significant importance in the past where very hard wood capable of withstanding heavy wear was required, such as for cartwheels, water wheels, cog wheels, tool handles, chopping boards and wooden pegs; in most of these uses wood has now been replaces by metal or other man-made materials.

External links

• Kew checklist - Fagales (http://www.kew.org/wcb/aboutfag.html)
• Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/links/doi/10.1046/j.1095-8339.2003.t01-1-00158.x/full/)

Fagales

Betulaceae - Corylaceae - Fagaceae - Ticodendraceae - Casuarinaceae - Juglandaceae - Rhoipteleaceae - Myricaceae