Bay Tree Standard (Laurus nobilis) – Clipped Evergreen Herb (5L Pot)

A bay tree clipped as a standard, with a clear straight stem under a dense head of dark, aromatic leaves.

It is a formal shape that works on either side of a doorway, as a focal point in a border or as a pair on a patio, and every leaf is usable in the kitchen. Supplied in a 5L pot, established and ready to display or pot on. In a container the head is easily held at one to two metres with light clipping; left in open ground bay grows far larger. Small creamy yellow flowers open in spring, and female plants carry small dark purple black berries in autumn.

Give it full sun or partial shade. It stands coastal wind and salt, needs little attention beyond a feed in spring and summer and a mulch to hold moisture, and is hardy in most of Britain. The leaves scorch brown in a cold drying wind and a plant in a pot is more exposed than one in the ground, so move it to shelter in severe frost.

You can choose a plain nursery pot or a Kubo basket when you order. The basket is a pot for the tree to stand in and makes no difference to how the plant grows.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: Bay, bay laurel or sweet bay
• Fully Grown Height and Spread: Up to around 7.5 metres tall by 3 metres across in open ground, easily maintained at 1 to 2 metres as a clipped container standard
• Growth Habit: Upright, dense evergreen, kept to size by clipping
• Perfect For: Patios, doorsteps, balconies, herb gardens, topiary and a low evergreen hedge
• Foliage: Dark green, glossy, aromatic oval leaves, picked fresh or dried for the kitchen
• Flowering Time: Spring, small creamy yellow flowers, with dark purple black berries on female plants in autumn
• Planting Position: Full sun or partial shade. Stands coastal wind and salt, and grows well in a container
• Soil Type: Free draining, in the ground or in a good potting compost
• Hardiness: Hardy in most of Britain and normally left outdoors all year, though the leaves scorch brown in a cold drying wind and a plant in a pot is best moved to shelter in a hard winter
• Maintenance: Low. Water freely in dry spells, feed through spring and summer, clip in late spring to keep its shape and repot every two or three years
• Seasonal Interest: All year round, spring, summer, autumn and winter
• Type: Hardy evergreen shrub or small tree, grown as a culinary herb