WANTED: Fresh bay leaves

10 years ago

Dear gardening friends ,
I am looking for somebody who is able to help me with fresh bay leaves. My use for them is not "food" so they needn't be certified as food. But they must be fresh leaves from a real tree. Dry leaves from a grocery store won't do. Fresh leaves seen sometimes at exorbitant prices at grocery stores could work except I need a lot of them which makes a purchase prohibitive. What I am trying to locate is somebody who has a tree and wouldn't mind cutting some branches for me and mailing them. I know that those trees grow very well in mild climates. Just to make sure, I am looking for leaves of bay tree - Laurus nobilis, not anything called laurel in this country. However, there is a native Californian tree called wild bay which would also serve my purpose - this one http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umbellularia . This tree grows wild on the West Coast and it is possible somebody has it growing on the premises. I would greatly appreciate any information and I am willing to discuss the conditions. I honestly don't know what I could offer for trade, name whatever may be of interest to you in East TN. Thank you very much.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

mrao77
10 years ago
Hi!
How much quantity are you needing? I do have a small bush that I trim back to bring indoors in winter. It is just starting to put out new growth. Usually it is pretty full by summer. I can send you some fresh leaves.

I am looking for clematis vines ,dwarf or variegated cannas, iris etc.

Let me know, thanks.
KatyaKatya
Original Author
10 years ago
Thank you very much! There is no need to sacrifice your new growth. I have found a source for now. I will be looking for them again next year but it is a long time away. Thank you!
lovedirt
9 years ago
I do have a big bush so let me know next year.
shawdy504
9 years ago
My dad is looking for a bay leaf tree hastily. We can not find one under 50 bucks and will still have to wait 3 years. Are any of you guys still able to part with a few leaves and maybe some advice on how to sprout our own tree from the leaf?
KatyaKatya
Original Author
9 years ago
lovedirt, thank you so much! I probably will. We traditionally use them around Easter.
shawdy504, I don't know anything about starting bay trees from cuttings or leaves. Here in Johnson City TN a store called Evergreen sells small bay trees definitely under $50, depending on their size.
KatyaKatya
Original Author
9 years ago
Dear friends who responded here - I am mostly addressing Lovedirt! It is spring and I am starting to look for bay leaves again. Two people sent me some last year and it worked perfectly. I don't know right now if any of them were from this thread - I posted on more than one forum. Anyway, I am going to try and locate anybody with a bay tree, whether noble bay or Oregon one, again. Which means I will start new threads re-posting this old message, I hope nobody minds. Thank you. Katya.