Last Updated on October 29, 2021 by Guillermina
Growing bay laurel indoors gives you unlimited access to the herbs whenever you need them for your recipe. In truth, there are many recipes where bay laurel is an important ingredient. So today, we will teach you how to plant bay leaf plant inside your home.
What Is Bay Leaf Plant?
Also known as sweet bay or laurel, bay laurel (Laurus Nobilis), bay leaf is an enduring evergreen in the Lauraceae family that is local to the Mediterranean area.
Bay leaf plants are wealthy ever. During the antiquated Greek and Roman occasions, the leaves were woven together to make profoundly prestigious crowns to decorate the heads of competitors and rulers. The trees were likewise developed near sanctuaries so the foliage could be gathered and consumed during consecrated sanctuary customs.
Bay leaf plants are commonly developed as a tree that can arrive at stunning statures as much as 50-feet; it additionally functions admirably as a holder plant that moves between your outside and indoor spaces or is kept inside all year. Plants show medium-sized, lustrous green leaves that are exceptionally fragrant and usually utilized in cooking.
Guide In Growing Bay Laurel Indoors
Bay Laurel can survive in cold-weather regions. It is categorized as USDA hardiness zones 8-11. For these regions, you can grow the plant outside. However, for zones 4-5 which are colder and harsher, you can grow the bay feal in a container or as a patio plant.
We recommend, however, that you plant them during the warm months. Then you can bring them inside and add them to your indoor herb garden when the weather gets colder. Here are some tips. Purchase a small plant from the nursery. Or if you have a friend or relative that has laurel leaves, you better ask for a division that you can grow. Take note that bay leaves are very hard to grow from seeds. This is why we always recommend getting hold of a young live plant when growing bay laurel indoors.
Growing Bay Laurel Indoors Through Air Layering
A very common way of propagating bay laurel is using an air layering technique. The following are some steps you can follow.
- Take a branch of your laurel and bend it down to the gardening soil. When doing this, you should be careful to not let it snap from the main tree. It has to be connected to the tree while it touches the potting mix.
- Utilize a piece of wire or metal stakes to secure the stem to the growing media. Since you’re growing indoors, you can prepare a large pot with a great potting mix. Then you tie up your stem there. The goal is to grow roots from the stem. So you have to leave the top 3-4 inches of the stem free.
- In a couple of weeks, you should notice some roots growing on the stem. Once new roots have developed, you can cut the stem so it stays on the pot. Once separated from the main plant, you can bring your potted plant indoors now.
The Best Pot When Growing Bay Leaf Indoors
Choosing the right pot when growing the bay leaf plant indoors is crucial for its health. To help maintain the balance between adequate soil moisture, select a container that is plastic. A fiberglass container is also a perfect fit.
We don’t recommend terracotta pots or ceramic pots because they don’t hold onto soil moisture longer. For bay leaf plants, it is best to have well-moisturized soil. Make sure there are good drainage holes in the bottom or add them yourself. This helps drain the excess water.
When growing bay leaf in a vegetable garden indoors, a bay leaf tree loves well-draining soil. The pH level must be from 4.5 to 8. For pruned compartments settle on a developing media that is marginally acidic (pH between 6-7) that has a great water holding limit yet openly depletes abundance dampness. Cove shrub doesn’t prefer to be waterlogged yet it doesn’t care to have dry soil all things considered.
Growing Bay Laurel Indoors Care and Maintenance
Care and Harvesting
The bay laurel tree is a beautiful plant when developed inside. So give it great consideration and try growing it.
Lighting
To accomplish the lavish foliage on sound trees make a point to place them in an area that gets full sun to half shade. Openness to the south or west-bound window is best when developed inside.
If you see indications of too minimal light you can enhance with a developed light or even take a stab at giving it some openness to additional glaring light.
Temperature
Bay laurel tree is to some degree not interested in changes in temperatures, as long as they are above freezing and stay underneath 90℉. Keep your tree in the super living spaces of your home where temperatures range somewhere in the range of 60 and 75℉ for ideal development; underneath this and development will slow impressively as the plant will believe it’s an ideal opportunity to go torpid.
Moistness
Because of their Mediterranean origin, bay laurel trees lean towards high moisture levels. Stickiness levels inside most homes are on the drier side; to battle, this occasionally fogs your tree when developed inside or develop it in a high moistness space of the home like the restroom.
Watering
Plants like the preparing blend or developing media to be marginally sodden consistently without being waterlogged. Water routinely during the hotter months, trying to not allow the root to ball dry out. During the lethargic season, you can back off on the watering somewhat, letting the top inch of developing media dry out prior to watering once more.
Manure
Apply a fair natural manure (fertilizer tea or fish emulsion functions admirably) once throughout the spring and afterward indeed later in the mid-year. Try not to prepare when the plant is lethargic during the colder months.
Disease
Generally, the bay leaf plant has not had many issues with developing a disease. Try not to allow the dirt to become waterlogged to stay away from root decay, and cautiously watch for aphids, scale bugs, and inlet sucker which is known as bouncing plant lice. Treat invasions rapidly to limit long-haul harm.
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