A few years before that I'd had good success with cuttings from the tree and had about a dozen small trees in little pots which kept growing nicely until they were big enough to sell at the gate. But did I keep one for us? Surely I must have done, but is the tree we took to Ipswich and then brought here in a pot as old as that? and if not where did I get it? I really can't remember.
Just before we left Ipswich the bay in a pot got blown over and the big pot broke so when we got here planting it out was one of the first things we did. We put it on the edge of the ditch and hope it will grow as big as the one at the smallholding was because it will then give us a bit more shelter from the wicked North West wind that blows in across the field.It shot up another foot last year and survived the snow last week, it's over 5 feet tall now.
Bay leaves are easy to dry and I use them to flavour things like mince when it's being cooked up for a bolog sauce or to make a lasagne. I also use them when simmering the milk to make a bread sauce.
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Sue
We've got a big bushy one too, fortunately planted in the paddock, where it doesn't bother anything. I can't remember using many of the leaves though .. .
ReplyDeleteWhich reminds me I have a bay in a pot at the farm which should come home and be planted here x
ReplyDeleteI bought a packet of Bay Leaves last month, cost £1.49!!! I am going to invest in a plant and dry my own. Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteOur bay is much slower in growth, but healthy. The snow killed off our Rosemary, but I took a cutting a couple of years ago, so I have the replacement.
ReplyDeleteI have had my Bay tree for twenty years, it had a sell-by-date yellow sticker in the herb section of Tesco and it was a tiny stalk, now stands about fifteen feet upwards and outwards, had a good prune last year but still growing well!
ReplyDeleteJulie xxxxxxx
I have never had a bay tree, but I did have a cutting of a hydrangea from my mum who was a very keen gardener and had 'green fingers' when it came to plants. That must have been three houses ago and it grew in pots and was ready for planting out two houses ago, but I knew we were moving on so kept it in its now large pot. It has produced lovely pink flower heads, so living in a pot and none of the house moves have done it any harm at all. It has now been planted in the garden and I see it every day from the conservatory window. A little reminder of my mum who passed away two years ago.
ReplyDeleteJoan (Devon)
I have a lovely bay in a pot. It's not huge and a couple of cold winters it lost all its leaves and I thought I'd killed it but back it came again. So useful, as you say, for stews, souple, casseroles, etc. Bay seems to be an in thing at the moment too.
ReplyDeleteJ x
Is bay flavour stronger from freshly picked leaves or from dried leaves? I can’t make up my mind.
ReplyDeleteI think more flavour in dried
DeleteI inherited a bay 'hedge' in my garden, it is around fifty years old and very healthy. I'd never had one before, so just prune it like a normal hedge, hasn't seemed to do any harm and it keeps on giving. Also, I don't actually dry any, I just pick a couple of leaves from it all year round, as and when I need it, still gives a wonderful flavour - is drying better? Love reading your blog, always so interesting and enjoyable. Best wishes, Terry
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading and enjoying the blog
DeleteI had no idea they were that hardy! We’re in a zone 4/5, here. I ordered two bays last year and they both died. A friend gave me four cuttings and they all died, too. No green thumb, here! I’d still like one, though.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
They are not very hardy when small but survive outside after that - at least here in England they do
DeleteA Bay tree is one thing I would love in my garden so I must see about getting one this year.
ReplyDeleteHugs-x-
I miss my bay bush. At my last house it grew tall enough to screen the view from dubious neighbours. My mum said she had never seen one so tall. I used the leaves all the time. I can’t believe how expensive dried ones are to buy.
ReplyDeleteI have a very old bay tree but can't remember when we got it but at least 20 years. I do use the fresh leaves but as I have to keep cutting it back I also have lots of dried ones. I try to give them away but nobody is interested.
ReplyDeleteWell it ceretainly looks sturdy and healthy enough Sue, and how much better and tastier to pick a few leaves off the trees than to use dried ones. I did have one up to a few years ago but then it quite suddenly died.
ReplyDeleteIt's very cool to be able to use your very own bay leaves! I always put them in beef stew. I wonder if they would grow here in Oregon, USA? ((hugs)), Teresa :-)
ReplyDeleteAt our last house we had a bay that grew to about 20’. We used to trim it back to keep a good shape and I would dry a few branches by hanging upside down in a cool room for a month or two. That yielded enough leaves for a whole year. We do not have room for a bay in the new house and it irks me every time I have to pay a fortune for a small jar.
ReplyDelete