pennyeast
The Darling Buds of Bay
Laurus nobilis (male tree)
Common names: True Laurel, Sweet Bay, Grecian Laurel, Laurel, or Bay Tree
Family: Lauraceae
The Bay Tree is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub reaching 10–18 m tall, native to the Mediterranean region.
The popular culinary seasoning, bay leaf, is used extensively in French, Italian, Spanish and Creole cooking. It flavours soups, stews, shellfish boils, pickling brines, sauces, marinades, and poultry and fish dishes.
It is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants; each flower is pale yellow-green, about 1 cm diameter, borne in pairs together beside a leaf. The fruit is a small black berry about 1 cm long, containing a single seed.
The leaves and berries of bay laurel contain the essential oils eugenol, cineol and geraniol, which account for the distinctive spicy aroma. Infusions are reputed to soothe the stomach and relieve flatulence. An oil pressed from the berries was once a popular liniment for arthritis and sore muscles, and still is used in perfumes, candles and soaps.
Bay laurel is the true laurel of Greek and Roman mythology. A poet laureate is an accomplished poet, and the Roman poet, Ovid, retold the story of the Greek nymph, Daphne, who was transformed into a laurel tree by her father, Peneus, so that she could avoid the amorous pursuit of the god, Apollo. (Cupid had shot an arrow into the fair maiden's heart so that she would not love Apollo.) Thereafter, Apollo wore a wreath of laurel to show his love for Daphne. Laurel has always symbolized victory and merit, and a baccalaureate (baca lauri, Latin for "laurel berry") still is a symbol of accomplishment. Bay laurel has been credited with magical properties, like protecting from witches, the devil and lightning.
The Darling Buds of Bay
Laurus nobilis (male tree)
Common names: True Laurel, Sweet Bay, Grecian Laurel, Laurel, or Bay Tree
Family: Lauraceae
The Bay Tree is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub reaching 10–18 m tall, native to the Mediterranean region.
The popular culinary seasoning, bay leaf, is used extensively in French, Italian, Spanish and Creole cooking. It flavours soups, stews, shellfish boils, pickling brines, sauces, marinades, and poultry and fish dishes.
It is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants; each flower is pale yellow-green, about 1 cm diameter, borne in pairs together beside a leaf. The fruit is a small black berry about 1 cm long, containing a single seed.
The leaves and berries of bay laurel contain the essential oils eugenol, cineol and geraniol, which account for the distinctive spicy aroma. Infusions are reputed to soothe the stomach and relieve flatulence. An oil pressed from the berries was once a popular liniment for arthritis and sore muscles, and still is used in perfumes, candles and soaps.
Bay laurel is the true laurel of Greek and Roman mythology. A poet laureate is an accomplished poet, and the Roman poet, Ovid, retold the story of the Greek nymph, Daphne, who was transformed into a laurel tree by her father, Peneus, so that she could avoid the amorous pursuit of the god, Apollo. (Cupid had shot an arrow into the fair maiden's heart so that she would not love Apollo.) Thereafter, Apollo wore a wreath of laurel to show his love for Daphne. Laurel has always symbolized victory and merit, and a baccalaureate (baca lauri, Latin for "laurel berry") still is a symbol of accomplishment. Bay laurel has been credited with magical properties, like protecting from witches, the devil and lightning.