A well-liked broadleaf evergreen, bay laurel (Laurus nobilis) is definitely cultivated for his or her aromatic and flavorful leaves.
These timber are additionally extremely versatile, including hanging decorative worth in diverse varieties comparable to hedges, shrubs, timber, or topiary specimens in each containers and backyard beds.
And a key aspect to creating wholesome, lush foliage, plus sustaining a manageable form and dimension, is annual pruning.
Slicing again bay, aka true or kitchen laurel, usually creates dense branching with an abundance of leaves.
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This abundance makes them an excellent alternative for clipping and sculpting into any form from crisp, boxy screens to summary or geometric requirements.
They will also be grown in a unfastened type, both as a multi-stemmed shrub or solitary tree, resplendent with a lavish cover of chartreuse to darkish inexperienced leaves.
Once more, common upkeep is required to encourage dense foliage and to maintain their formidable progress in verify.
Is your backyard prepared for stunning bay laurels with a lot of aromatic foliage? Then sharpen your shears and let’s get into how and when to prune bay laurel timber!
Right here’s what you’ll discover forward:
Bay Tree Fundamentals
Bay timber do greatest in a sunny, protected location in humus wealthy, well-draining soil with a barely acidic to alkaline pH of 5.5 to 7.5.
They’re hardy in USDA Zones 7 to 11, and outdoors of their vary could be grown as container crops, however you’ll have to overwinter them indoors or in a protected outbuilding like a greenhouse or orangery.
You possibly can study extra about the way to develop bay laurel in our information.
A well-liked kitchen herb, the leaves are used dried or recent in a variety of savory dishes, making them a preferred alternative for kitchen and potager gardens.
And as enticing evergreens, their heavy branching and thick foliage makes L. nobilis a pure for formal or unfastened hedges, screens, showy shrubs, standalone timber, or formed as topiary.
Though progress isn’t quick, it’s regular. Mature bay laurel timber can attain a powerful peak of as much as 55 ft and nonetheless retain dense foliage – however sustaining a manageable dimension is definitely achieved by rising a compact selection and a few annual upkeep.
These resilient timber reply eagerly to both a lightweight trim or strong pruning, and rapidly fill out with a recent flush of summer time leaves.
They’ll even take a tough in the reduction of, with the principle trunk severed if wanted – they’ll come again with new progress and produce one other verdant cover in only a few years!
However the way you prune your bay laurel timber is dependent upon the way you develop them.
Container crops, shrubs, and timber have to be in the reduction of to take care of a manageable dimension.
Hedges, screens, and topiaries are double lower to supply a luxuriant wall of shiny, scented leaves for max decorative attraction.
And naturally, you need to have loads of leaves to reap for the kitchen as properly!
Okay, that’s the fundamentals… now let’s transfer on to the particulars of how and when to prune bay timber.
Greatest Timing for Quick Regrowth
Bay timber could be given a lightweight trim at any time of the 12 months, however the perfect time to prune is in late spring after new progress has emerged.
Presently, loose-form container crops, shrubs, and timber could be trimmed frivolously to move again final 12 months’s progress.
Or in the event that they have to be resized or reshaped, that is additionally the time for a tougher in the reduction of the place they are often diminished by as a lot as one-third of their total dimension.
Late spring can be the time to begin shaping hedges, privateness screens, and topiary requirements with a lightweight trim to determine the specified define.
By summer time, kitchen laurels are rising far more vigorously and placing out loads of new progress.
That is when hedges and topiaries are given a second trimming to finish the specified form or give the plant a clipped look if desired.
Hedge and Topiary Shaping
To begin shaping hedges, screens, and topiaries and encourage branching, take away any winter broken leaves, and damaged or lifeless stems utilizing clear, sharp shears or a pruning noticed.
This Japanese-style folding pruning noticed from Garrett Wade is good. It’s sharp, sturdy, and folds into the deal with for compact storage.
Folding Pruning Noticed
In the reduction of broken leaves to the closest set of latest buds or set of wholesome leaves.
At this level, don’t fear an excessive amount of about unpleasant divots or dips left behind after eradicating cold-damaged leaves – the quick summer time progress rapidly fills in any gaps.
Use clear, sharp shears to move again final 12 months’s progress, snipping stems simply above a set of wholesome buds or leaves.
Trim frivolously or take away as a lot as one-third of the general dimension as desired.
You’ll want to complete shaping in summer time when the timber are pushing out a lot of new progress.
To complete your hedge or topiary with a comfortable, leafy look, use hand shears to selectively in the reduction of ideas and stems, refining the form you began in spring.
Should you favor a crisp, clipped look, use pruning shears or a hedge trimmer to chop again leaves and stems into sharp silhouettes.
Black and Decker Hedge Trimmer
One thing like this 16-inch hedge trimmer from Black and Decker, out there by way of Walmart makes quick work of shaping hedges and topiary.
With bay timber, you possibly can lower by way of the leaves with out concern about abandoning unpleasant brown edges – as soon as they heal, solely a slight grey scar stays on the lower edge.
As summer time progresses and new foliage emerges, give your crops a lightweight trim to take care of stability and the specified form.
Suckers and Shoots
Eradicating suckers and shoots is critical for topiaries and timber, or anyplace you need to protect a single trunk with a clear, naked look.
Suckers emerge annually across the base of crops as new, tender stems. Shoots are the little child limbs that emerge from naked trunks.
For hedges, shrubs, and screens, suckers and shoots could be left in place as a result of they increase the bottom into clumps and enhance the density of the foliage.
To take away suckers from timber and topiary, scrape away soil from across the suckers then use clear, sharp shears to chop them beneath the soil stage.
The decrease you possibly can lower them, the much less likelihood they’ve of surviving to sprout once more.
To take away shoots rising from naked trunks, use clear, sharp shears to snip them off as near the trunk as attainable.
Trimming Shrubs
As talked about, when shoots and suckers are left in place bay laurel varieties bushy clumps with a number of, densely foliated stems.
Over time, clumps prolong outward into new territory, including girth to their total dimension and creating pretty evergreen screens.
To handle the looks of your shrubs, begin by eradicating any winter-damaged leaves in addition to any damaged, crossing, or lifeless branches.
To take care of their dimension and form, in the reduction of final 12 months’s progress to a set of wholesome buds or leaves, chopping again the guidelines of every department by as much as one third of its size.
In case your shrub has unfold out an excessive amount of on your liking, you possibly can cut back its width by eradicating as much as one third of the stems from the outside perimeter, chopping at, or simply beneath the soil stage.
Heading Again Bushes
Though bay timber can develop tall with out getting leggy or sparse, usually heading again the branches helps to protect an interesting form and retains crops wholesome with vibrant foliage as properly.
“Heading again” is a pruning time period to explain the method of chopping the terminal stem of a department again to a bud. “Thinning” refers back to the full removing of a department the place it joins the principle stem.
To take care of the form of your tree, begin by eradicating any lifeless and broken limbs, and ones which can be crossed or rising in the direction of the middle of the cover.
Use clear, sharp hand pruners on small branches and loppers or a pointy noticed on bigger ones.
To scale back the dimensions of the specimen, head again the rising ideas by as much as a 3rd of their whole size.
To reshape the profile, in the reduction of the rising ideas as desired and skinny out small limbs by chopping them off the place they emerge from a powerful aspect department.
Should you like your timber to have a naked trunk, take away the brand new shoots that seem annually. Minimize as near the trunk as attainable.
Rejuvenate Overgrown Specimens
Mature, overgrown bay laurels also can tolerate a really onerous in the reduction of and may even get better when the principle trunk is lower off.
However regrowth is sluggish and chopping down the trunk leaves an unpleasant naked stump. As a substitute, plan to hold out a tough in the reduction of over two or three seasons.
For a tough in the reduction of, in late spring take away one-third of the general dimension on your first 12 months lower.
Within the second 12 months, in the reduction of by one other one-third, shaping as you go. Simply attempt to keep away from chopping away final 12 months’s progress and any new shoots on the decrease elements of the plant – go away them in place in order that they produce foliage to cowl naked branches.
Within the third 12 months, head again the guidelines of the earlier years’ progress, chopping them away at a powerful aspect bud. Selectively skinny out any remaining branches in areas you’d like to scale back, eradicating secondary stems or smaller twigs on the junction the place they emerge from a powerful aspect department.
Unfold out over two or three years, you possibly can considerably cut back the general dimension of your tree however nonetheless benefit from the lush foliage and harvest leaves as properly.
Harvesting Leaves
Talking of harvesting, bay leaves are scrumptious and used dried or recent in a wide range of dishes!
They are often harvested at any time of the 12 months for recent use.
However the summer time months of June, July, and August are once they have the very best concentrations of fragrant important oils. Should you plan to dry the leaves, use these collected in summer time for the perfect taste.
For the freshest, most intense flavors, leaves needs to be picked within the morning after the dew has evaporated and earlier than the recent solar disperses their oils.
Study extra about the way to harvest bay leaves in our information.
Tremendous Foliage
Strong and versatile crops grown for his or her flavorful leaves, bay laurel timber additionally make extremely enticing foliage crops that may be grown in containers or as hedges, screens, shrubs, topiary, and timber!
In the reduction of in late spring after new progress has emerged and provides hedges and topiary a second pruning in summer time to refine their form or to create a crisp profile.
For giant, overgrown timber, lower them again over the course of some seasons so you possibly can nonetheless get pleasure from their nice foliage within the kitchen and backyard as you resize.
Any questions on the way to prune bay laurel timber? Ask away within the feedback part beneath.
And for extra details about rising bay laurel in your backyard, learn these guides subsequent: