A bay leaf shrub

[Does the Cooking]

I bought a bayleaf shrub for £I.99; it's in a small plastic plant pot that woud fit in the palm of my hand. At least six shoots should Itransplant now or wait till spring. Can I use the leaves now or is it better to wait thanks

PS l I've had so much fun this summer I'm doing it again

[Alison]

Where have you got the plant? If it's in the house and looking a bit pot bound then you may be as well re-potting, otherwise I would be inclined to wait to spring. If you want to use the odd leaf it's probably OK but don't go mad otherwise you'll strip it. I usually give mine a good prune late summer to tidy it up and then again if it's looking straggly when the new growth comes through - and obviously that doesn't include the raids I make when cookery requires! You can dry the pruned leaves and use as necessary.

[Amanda1]

I think that bay likes being pot bound, I would leave it until later to transplant.

[Crazy Chickie]

I got a bay about two years ago, it was tiny and a little pot bound so i potted it on n left it in grn house, it had a massive spurt of growth and did really well but it was slightly earlier in the year that i repotted it. I would agree with Alisons advice as far as repotting now (only if its inside) and would maybe go v easy on the harvesting.

[kirsty b]

I've got a little bay plant too. Its in my garden because I bought it in the summer and I'm itching to use the leaves but daren't cos its so little! Reassuring to hope that it may have a growth spurt next year.

Kirsty

[yoanbob]

I got given about 10 bays in a pot (about 20cm tall pot, bays we're proberbly 10 cm.)for my birthday last xmas, the gardening guru who grew them for me told me to leave them till this winter and re pot which i did last week, they look fine.

[roitelet]

Hope you have a lot of space Yoanbob They get HUGE

[rustylady]

I wouldn't re-pot until spring, and if you don't have many leaves yet don't pick them for cooking.

Bay is a long term investment and once established does really well. You can also prune or train it into really fancy shapes.

Roitelet, you can keep them smaller by planting them in large pots instead of direct into the ground.

[bramble]

I havetwo bay leaf shrubs in pots but have never brought them indoors. They are fine left outdoors through the winter.

[Snadger]

They have Bay trees in the local Garden Centre for £2..99! They look to be strong little plants about 1'0" high and well branched. Theyre in a bout a 5" pot.
Fancy putting one in a large pot and making a bay pyramid. Doubt they would survive outside round here but would a cold greenhouse/polytunnel/cloche allow it to survive the winter so I could put it back out in the Spring?

[rustylady]

A cold greenhouse should be fine. I know I'm in Suffolk and my potted bay is near the back door where it is sheltered, but it's been neglected for 3 years now and is doing fine. Also managed to strike some cuttings.
I've found that it's cold biting winds that make them poorly, burning the leaves and making them look really sad.
Good luck with yours, Snadger

[Earthbabe]

Mine is in the ground outside and has been since we moved to this house. It is now making a take over bid (well all the perennial herbs are truth told) and I have berries for the first time this year (lots). Happy birds all round. Now I can pick the rest of the myrtle berries for drying.

I have never covered it nor lavished any attention on it. It ignores my attempts to prune it back and has no shape whatsoever. Love it.

It is a wonderful herb to have around at this time of year. I have put some in my christmas/yule wreath.

[srodders]

We've got a 20' bay in our back garden - but then we don't get proper frosts, which would help.
I don't think that there would be a problem in the UK though (not up on the mountains though!) as I've seen them growing as trees/hedges in places in Italy where the winter weather gets as bad as the UK.

[andrewo]

Mine was grown from a small pot, it's now 4' high in 6 years, and being clipped into a ball - we are south facing and on the pennines, so we are pretty exposed to torrential rain, wind and snow, and it grows well, is completely unprotected and occasionally gets attacked by scale insects.