Bay Leaf Tree (Bay Laurel)

An elegant evergreen shrub or small tree, Bay Leaf Trees, also called Bay Laurels, are prized for their aromatic leaves, long used in culinary dishes, including soups, stews, and sauces. 

In the garden, Bay Leaf Trees forms an attractive glossy-green specimen that can be kept neatly pruned as a shrub, trained into a small tree, or clipped as topiary.

Outdoors in the ground, Bay Leaf Trees can eventually reach 12–15 feet tall, though they respond well to trimming and can be maintained at a smaller size. In containers, they stay more compact, usually 3–6 feet, and make a striking patio plant all year.

Bay Leaf Trees are native to the Mediterranean, so they thrive in full sun and well-drained soil, but are not particularly hardy to cold winters. In coastal B.C., Bay Leaf Trees do best being overwintered in a greenhouse, sunroom, or brought indoors to a bright, cool spot once frost threatens. With this protection, it can live for decades, providing a steady harvest of fragrant leaves and year-round greenery. 

Common names: Bay tree, Bay Leaf tree, Bay Laurel, Sweet Bay

Edible: Leaves used as an herb in cooking (but not eaten whole)
Harvest timing: All year, though leaves have the highest oil content in mid-summer

Scientific name: Laurus nobilis
Light requirements: Full sun to part shade
Full-grown size: 3-15' tall depending on pruning and container versus in-ground planting.
Hardiness: Zone 8
Pollination: Cross-pollinated, but pollination not needed to harvest leaves 
Wildlife: Not notable
Origin: Mediterranean 
Noteworthy: Leaves used as an herb in cooking. Can be grown in a container.