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Bay Leaf Tree Laurus Nobilis Seeds
Packet of 10 large viable seeds from this awesome and tasty species!
Got these seeds from a friend in Portugal and I have had a fantastic germination rate as you can see in the picture. Ten seeds got me 10 healthy shoots!
All I did was wack them in a cup of warm water and leave it overnight. Got up the next morning and wacked them in large pot and promptly forgot about them….
About a month and a half later I remembered I had them around somewhere, and went to check on them. 100% success!
Handled repotting really well and all have bounced back except two which got eaten by something. I think it was caterpillars, but not to worry.
Why am I growing them? Because they taste great, and smell even better.
Perfect for a hearty stew or thick bean and lentil dishes.
The Mrs swears by them as a headache cure. Just one leaf simmered in milk, drink the milk, headache gone. I make a tea from it every now and then from the soft young tips.
If I had more plants I would drink it all the time. Working on that!
I add the leaves to the cupboards and the containers where I keep seed to keep the moths and chewing insects away.
Used stored with grain throughout the Mediteranian for centuries, as a natural insecticide to keep weevils out of grain harvests. I have even used it as a bugspray to protect my potatoes once when I was desperate and it worked great on those little green beetles. Never had enough spare leaves to try again (we eat too many ourselves) but now I have another lot of seeds I am gonna plant a heap!
Our plants are tiny, and most folks prune them to keep them as little potted bushes, shrubs or as fancy pruned and shaped toparies. Makes a good Bonsai I am told?
The tree itself has the potential to get massive and live for ages. 18meters or 60ft, and several hundred years old as a maintained hedge, a little less as a huge tree.
Really hardy surviving the hot 45°C+ days(113°f) and dry times with no issues and apparently it can go down to -5°C (23°F) if given a little shelter from the heavy frosts.
This is the fella that the Romans used a wreath made from laurel leaves to indicate honour and distinction, the one that Julius Caesar is always wearing in the pictures.
Been used as a treatment for just about everything for just about forever. It’s an antibacterial, antiseptic, insecticide, antifungal, and even a narcotic the internet tells me?
The oil has similar properties and has been used to aid digestion, treat bronchitis, influenza and many other ailments including topically for sprains, bruises, as ear drops and an ingredient in soap.
For companion planting it is a great on for protecting nearby plants from insect attack. I have had heaps of dramas with our kangaroo apples, but not now the latest lot of bay seedlings are over there!
There you have it, another easy to grow culinary necessity.
Home grow by a friend of ours, naturally without any chemicals.
