Laurel is a Mediterranean plant, which in our everyday life is perceived only as a flavoring additive for cooking. Meanwhile, the common laurel is a noble tree, moreover, one of the oldest plants. Amateur gardeners willingly grow it on their window sills for the sake of decorative greenery.
Homeland of the plant
Noble bay is one of the most popular evergreens, which is grown at home. It may look like a small bush or a miniature tree. The plant not only decorates the room with its foliage, because it has a lot of useful properties. In addition, having a laurel on the windowsill, you will never again buy seasoning in the store.
The homeland of the laurel is the Mediterranean. From there, it gradually spread to the subtropical regions of Europe. It can be found even in Russia in the southwestern region of the Krasnodar Territory.
The noble laurel belongs to the laurel family. In the wild, a plant can even survive a century. It can be safely attributed to the category of centenarians. The plant reaches a height of ten meters or more. But even with good care at home, the noble laurel has a much more modest size.
The plant can grow in the form of a bush or tree. Its evergreen foliage does not fall throughout the year, which gives it a decorative look. During flowering, laurel is covered with small yellow flowers.
Choosing a place for the plant
Despite such a noble origin, the laurel can not be called sissy. He is not too demanding on the conditions. Perhaps, for this reason, they began to grow him on the windows of the mistress. Of course, this does not mean that the plant does not require care. But it is not at all complicated in comparison with other cultures. Laurel requires watering, pruning, spraying and other simple manipulations. Imagine that with minimal proper care, a noble laurel at home can live up to fifteen years.
For the plant, you need to choose the right place in your apartment. In nature, it is adapted to both a large amount of sunlight and partial shade. Yet the sun is more preferable for the plant. In the summer, it can be taken out to the veranda, balcony or to the courtyard.
In an apartment or in a house for a plant it is better to allocate a place on the south window. Young laurels are more shade-tolerant than older plants. During periods of rest, the pot with the plant can be rearranged on the north window.
All the warm months, a noble laurel can even be in the open. Putting a seedling in a brightly lit place, you need to take care of a protective screen that can slightly cover the foliage, as it can get burned.
A noble laurel in a pot should not be rotated, trying equally to give coverage to the entire crown. The plant itself is able to cope with this. The fact is that trees are oriented towards magnetic poles and any movement for them is stressful.
Temperature mode
For a noble laurel, content with seasonal temperature fluctuations is preferable than under the same room conditions. In general, the temperature regime can be characterized as follows. In winter, the plant can be kept at 7-10 degrees, in spring and summer in the range of 17-25 degrees (at night and daytime, respectively).
With the arrival of heat at the first opportunity, the plant is carried out to the street, to the garden or to the balcony. You can return it to the house when the night temperature drops below +3 degrees.
In the homeland, laurel grows everywhere, most often on rocky slopes in the mountains. Sometimes weather conditions are not entirely favorable there, so the plant tolerate even negative temperatures for a short time.
In areas with a fairly mild climate, a tree or bush can winter in unheated greenhouses. For a short time, the plant can withstand a temperature drop of -10 degrees.
The soil
To grow a noble laurel you need well-drained and light soil. You can purchase any universal primer. But you can make the right mixture yourself. For it, you need to take one part of the turfy land, as much humus or compost and leafy land, as well as two parts of sand. The substrate must have a neutral pH response.
The plant laurel noble, in principle, is not too susceptible to root rot. Nevertheless, the soil before planting is recommended to be disinfected. To do this, it is placed in the oven for twenty minutes. In this case, the temperature is set to 100 degrees. At higher values, there is a threat of the death of all useful microflora.
Landing
For the cultivation of a noble laurel, the choice of container is very important. When choosing a pot for a plant, you should be aware that its size has a great influence on the growth rate and development of the bush. The larger the capacity, the greater the annual growth can be achieved. But, if you want to get a miniature tree, then you should buy a small pot, since there is no need for space in the roots.
Noble laurel is transplanted at home only when, when the roots completely fill all the free space and become visible in the drainage holes. The next container for transplant is selected only a couple of centimeters wider than before.
The frequency of transplants largely depends on the age of the plant. So, for example, a seedling from the age of three is recommended to be replanted annually in the early spring or after the end of the growing season. Older plants are transplanted at the same time, but already once every two years.
When transplanting, root food is reduced by about a third. For a plant, this is not at all dangerous. The most important part of the roots is located on top. In the new tank, you will certainly lay out the drainage, and after that fill the free space with fresh soil. Experts recommend immediately enriching the soil with organic matter, adding, for example, something like fish-bone meal.
The plant needs loosening the soil. However, it is worth remembering that its roots are located rather shallow. Therefore, loosening must be done carefully. You can even close the trunk circle with mulch. Laurel plants for some reason always attract the attention of cats. Therefore, the pots on top can be decorated with colored pebbles, which will serve not only as an additional decoration, but also as protection against “diggers”.
According to reviews, the noble laurel is growing quite slowly, so from the age of six it does not need to be transplanted at all, replacing the top layer with a new one.
Top dressing
According to the state of the laurel, one can very simply judge the need for its transplantation. The main indicator is the state of the surface of the foliage. If she lost the gloss, then this indicates that the soil is depleted. This moment can be avoided thanks to timely fertilizer application. During periods of active vegetation, universal complexes are usually used. Seedlings can be fed no more than once every two weeks. For an adult plant, it is enough to apply fertilizer once a month.
The plant has a break during active vegetation. This is due to the summer drought. This is worth remembering when feeding.
Watering
Caring for a noble laurel is quite simple. First of all, it concerns the watering regime. The plant is not too demanding in this regard. It suffers a lack of moisture much more easily than its excess. Watering the plant is necessary if you have immersed your finger in the soil and feel that it is dry. It is worth taking into account seasonality. In early summer and spring, trees consume more moisture than in winter. Therefore, in the cold season, stagnation of water must be excluded. To do this, the pan is filled with gravel.
Growing a noble laurel at home is not a hassle. Nevertheless, it is worth paying attention to the plant. Occasionally it needs to be sprayed. This will make the foliage even more beautiful. For spraying, it is better to use soft water, from which there are no white traces on the foliage. In the heat of the plant, you can indulge in a bath in the shower. Water treatments are good for a laurel, which is spoiled by sunlight. If the plant is in partial shade, then it is enough for him to periodically wipe the foliage with a damp cloth.
In a room with overdried air, especially in winter, it is necessary to put a tray with water near the plant.
Laurel breeding
The plant propagates in several ways: by cuttings, aerial layering, dividing the bush, seeds and vaccinations. According to experts, the most effective cuttings. As a material, you can use twigs that are cut during the formation of the crown. Semi-lignified shoots must be cut obliquely so that there are three buds on each of them. The lower part of the foliage is removed. Workpieces are rooted in wet sand or sphagnum, artificial substrates are also suitable. Acidic soils are not suitable for seedlings. The roots on the branches, of course, will appear, but at the same time they will develop very slowly. The most successful option for planting is sand, under which a layer of soil is placed. Strengthened roots after sand penetrate the soil and get nutrients.
Seedlings are planted in the soil at an angle. Cuttings are kept under diffused light in a warm place in a place protected from draft. After six months, plants can be transplanted into individual pots.
Bush division
Propagation of the plant can be done by dividing the bush. This is done in early spring or autumn, when the laurel is in a dormant phase. It is necessary to divide the bush in such a way that each part has got viable roots.
Another method of reproduction is air layering. To do this, a couple of notches are made on a healthy branch, wrapped in sphagnum and covered with a film. You can attach a package with a substrate to a branch. After the roots will appear under the film. Then the finished layers are separated from the mother plant and planted in a pot.
Seed propagation
With good care at home, you can achieve the flowering of a noble laurel (photo is given in the article), but the plant will not give seeds, since it is dioecious. But it is not at all necessary that a representative of the opposite sex will be nearby. But the seeds of the noble laurel may well be brought from the trip. However, it is worth noting that they germinate very slowly. In addition, they quickly lose their germination capacity, so they must be sown immediately. Overgrowth can appear within six months. Not every housewife is able to show so much patience. The only positive thing about using seeds is that the young plant will be fully adapted to your conditions.
As for another variant of reproduction - vaccination, it is used only when decorative forms are replicated.
Ailments
Healthy plants are less susceptible to disease. Their leaves are filled with healing essential oils, so there are not many hunters for them. But a weakened plant may well become a place for the appearance of, for example, aphids or fungi. Parasites are removed with cotton soaked in alcohol. You can treat the plant with insecticides, but after that the foliage can no longer be used as a seasoning.
Also on the laurel can scale insects in conditions of insufficient moisture. To get rid of it, the colonies are washed off with garlic infusion. It is necessary to normalize the conditions for the growth of laurel, to feed it, and then it will cope with parasites itself. Infected plants must be isolated.
Laurel is susceptible to fungal diseases in low light, in the absence of ventilation and in high humidity.
Decorative meaning
Laurel is able to become a real decoration of the interior. Since the plant tolerates pruning perfectly, then it can be given absolutely any shape. The classic option is a cone or ball. Spherical laurel looks very elegant. Pruning plants begin to produce youth. This will provide the laurel with a thick and symmetrical crown. There are no clear terms for pruning, but it is better to do this before the kidneys wake up. Or at the end of the growing season. It is easier for the plant to transfer more frequent, but less traumatic haircuts.
Tree trunks can be formed straight or in the form of a spiral. You can get a spiral shape using a wire. Laurels are generally good for creating plant compositions. Against the background of its dark foliage, other plants will look even more spectacular.
Useful properties of laurel
Laurel is a powerful source of volatile production. Under normal circumstances, the aroma is not felt. Leaves become fragrant after drying. But if you squeeze a fresh leaf in your hands, you will immediately feel a light aroma with a muscat shade. Westerners call it sweet.
Laurel is very sensitive to the care of him, delighting us with his foliage. The presence of such a plant in the house reduces the likelihood of migraines. Plant fungicides have a positive effect on the vessels of the brain. Laurel infusion is able to relieve joint pain, and fresh leaves heal wounds no worse than plantain. There are many folk recipes using laurel.
The plant improves appetite, helps to normalize digestive processes. It is believed that volatile production of foliage has a detrimental effect on the causative agent of tuberculosis. The plant also helps to cope with tonsillitis, colds and inflammation of the oral cavity.
An excellent essential oil that has antiviral and antibacterial effects is successfully obtained from laurel. It is also an anti-inflammatory.
The plant contains terpenoids, so laurel-based drugs are used for improper metabolism. No less good results were obtained when using laurel in the treatment of diseases of the gastric tract and circulatory system.
In addition to all its advantages, a noble room laurel is also valuable for its decorative appearance. It is especially interesting during flowering. Of course, not all housewives manage to achieve the appearance of small flowers. But this does not touch the beauty of the plant.