One way to truly savor the Southwest is to grow and use herbs that do well in our dry climate, like bay.

On Gardening With Soule this week, I posted this:

“I could write a book about having your yard to look lovely, grow food, and be a low-water and low maintenance space. Oh wait. I have. It’s called Father Kino’s Herbs: Growing & Using Them Today. So many herbs look lovely in the landscape, are low water, and can help make life more tasty.” and I started that list with the “Beautiful Bay Laurel”

Beautiful Bay Laurel

First off – with Christmas coming this is truly an herb to consider. You could buy a small plant, use it indoors as a pretty evergreen decoration, and then plant it outside for years of herbal harvest.

True bay laurel (Laurus nobilis) is the source of bay leaves – and a beautiful small evergreen tree.  Its common names include bay tree, bay laurel, sweet bay, true laurel, Grecian laurel, or simply laurel. The Spanish name is laurel, harking back to the Latin roots of the plant.

Long History of Use

Laurel figures prominently in classical Greek and Roman culture. In ancient Greece and Rome, the bay tree was considered sacred to Apollo, the sun deity.    Leafy branches of bay were woven into wreaths to crown the heads of kings and queens, priests, priestesses, poets, bards, and the victors of battles and athletic or scholarly contests.

At the first Olympics in 776 B.C.E., laurel garlands were presented to the champions of each contest. Later, during the Renaissance, doctors, upon passing their final examinations, were decorated with berried branches of bay.    From this ancient custom derives the French word baccalaureate (from “bacca,” a berry, and “laureus,” of laurel); this has been modified into the term “bachelor” in referring to one type of college degree.

Once Used Medicinally

Bay has been used medicinally for centuries.    It has a reputation for soothing the stomach and relieving flatulence.    Bay has also been used as an astringent, diuretic, narcotic, or stimulant.    An infusion (tea) is prepared for these purposes.

Bay Oils

Oil of Bay, extracted from the leaves, contains many components, including cineol, geraniol, and some eugenol.    Studies of the purified essential oil have proven bactericidal and fungicidal properties.    Use as a narcotic may be due to the eugenol found in bay (an oil also found in cloves), which has been shown to have sedative and narcotic effects in mice.

Bay is used externally, and considered by some to be a healing agent for rheumatism.    In such cases the essential oil is rubbed on the aching joints.    A soothing bath soak is prepared from an infusion of the leaves, and added to the bath water.    External use of bay may cause dermatitis in sensitive individuals.    Always test a small patch of skin before widespread use.

Harvesting Bay

Bay as a herb is always used dried because there are several bitter tasting compounds which are lost with drying. These compounds that are lost are the same ones that helped the Delphi Oracle have visions. They are also the reason those oracles never reached old age. If an herb is historically used dried, we do well to follow those traditions.

Using Bay

Add bay to your cooking, and remove before eating. You can also use several leaves to to make an infusion (tea) base for soups.

Bay leaves are used as a pest repellent for flour weevils.    Just add several leaves, ideally in a muslin bag, to your flour canisters.    Change to fresh leaves every six months.    You can use the old leaves as organic mulch in the garden.

Bay leaves, either fresh or dried, can be used to create lovely long lasting herbal wreaths, which can look lovely for the holiday season ahead.

If you can find one, a small bay tree could be sculpted into a Christmas tree.  Just save the trimmings for the herb cabinet!

Older Versions of this Article

Other versions of this article may be still out on the interweb. I wrote it up once for Organic Gardening Magazine. Also there is a version excerpted from my Father Kino Herbs book that I wrote for the Savor Sisters in 2016.  Further history of the Savor Sisters and one reason why we call the writers on this site Savorists.

Father Kino’s Herbs

The last few copies of this out-of-print award winning Southwestern book are now for sale. Father Kino’s Herbs: Growing and Using Them Today   The review says:

“Award-winning garden writer Dr. Jacqueline A. Soule has pulled together a fascinating book on the life of Father Eusebio Francisco Kino and some of the plants that he brought to Southern Arizona and northwestern Sonora, and area called the Pimeria Alta.”

This link is to our book sales site. The profits from the sale go to the local Horticulture Therapy non-profit Tierra del Sol Institute.  We hope you will help support this great Southwest non-profit!

Legal Notes

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Disclaimer

The authors of this website have researched the edibility of the materials we discuss, however, humans vary in their ability to tolerate different foods, drinks, and herbs. Individuals consuming flowers, plants, animals or derivatives mentioned in this blog do so entirely at their own risk. The authors on this site cannot be held responsible for any adverse reaction. In case of doubt please consult your medical practitioner.