Bay Tree - Dead or Alive?

thegrimreaper0507 · July 2021

Hi everyone,

I am new to these forums and feeling truly despondent because I cannot seem to keep my plants alive. My ineptitude is making a rather large dent in both my wallet and my self esteem.

I'll start with my bay tree (images below: Is it still alive or have I completely destroyed it? If it's still alive, what on earth should I do with it? Thanks so much in advance!

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6030279/uploads/editor/z0/g2knfpsokz5x.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6030279/uploads/editor/iw/r7uaf0dda5m5.jpg

Posy · July 2021

Don't give up, but do some research before you buy. I think your bay is terminal but it is in a tiny pot and very close to the wall. How long have you had it, what compost did you use, did you water and feed it and what weather conditions has it experienced?

Dovefromabove · July 2021

Hello and welcome to the forum @thegrimreaper0507 😊

Do not despair … yet … we never give up trying to turn people into gardeners. 😉

That being said, your bay tree does look ‘somewhat dead’. What have or haven’t you been doing to it?

Let’s start with …

1. What sort of compost is it planted in?

2. How often have you watered it and how much water do you give it each time?

3. How long have you had it?

4. How much sun does that spot get?

😊

Joyce Goldenlily · July 2021

Bay trees are as tough as old boots, however, yours does look a "bit sick!"

I have discovered they grow wild on the cliff tops down here in Cornwall. I kept trying to grow bay before noticing they grew wild in solid clay in the thames valley area. I changed tack and stopped nursing my plants, treated them hard and had much better success. They do not need feeding or rich compost, they seem to grow best in heavy clay and plenty of moisture. I personally think they are not good specimens to grow in a container.
Having said that, mine have been reduced to a dead looking stick which when watered have made new growth from the base so you may be able to resurrect yours.

Posy · July 2021

I have two 'lollipops' that I found as seedlings in my garden and potted up just to see if I could do it. They must be 10 - 15 years old now and do very well. I do water and feed regularly .

thegrimreaper0507 · July 2021

Posy said:

Don't give up, but do some research before you buy. I think your bay is terminal but it is in a tiny pot and very close to the wall. How long have you had it, what compost did you use, did you water and feed it and what weather conditions has it experienced?

Hi Posy, I've had it for about 3 years or so and it is sheltered in a porch area. It gets lots of sunlight and when I first bought it I hardly watered it. Do you think it's in the wrong position?

thegrimreaper0507 · July 2021

Dovefromabove said:

Hello and welcome to the forum @thegrimreaper0507 😊

Do not despair … yet … we never give up trying to turn people into gardeners. 😉

That being said, your bay tree does look ‘somewhat dead’. What have or haven’t you been doing to it?

Let’s start with …

1. What sort of compost is it planted in?

2. How often have you watered it and how much water do you give it each time?

3. How long have you had it?

4. How much sun does that spot get?
😊

Hi - thanks so much, I really hope you all succeed in making me into a gardener!

1. I bought it as is from my local garden centre so I'm not sure
2. When I first bought the plant, I hardly watered it and initially it was fine. But it then just started turning brown all of a sudden and all of the leaves turned brown. It started with little brown spots and progressively got worse. So I pruned it and removed all of the leaves and it just hasn't grown since unfortunately

3. Probably around 3 years
4. It's a really sunny spot with lots of direct sunlight. It's underneath a porch area so sheltered from strong winds and rain.

I am so sad because it was quite an expensive tree and I am actually really fond of it, but it looks so sad.

thegrimreaper0507 · July 2021

Joyce Goldenlily said:

Bay trees are as tough as old boots, however, yours does look a "bit sick!"

I have discovered they grow wild on the cliff tops down here in Cornwall. I kept trying to grow bay before noticing they grew wild in solid clay in the thames valley area. I changed tack and stopped nursing my plants, treated them hard and had much better success. They do not need feeding or rich compost, they seem to grow best in heavy clay and plenty of moisture. I personally think they are not good specimens to grow in a container.
Having said that, mine have been reduced to a dead looking stick which when watered have made new growth from the base so you may be able to resurrect yours.

Hi Joyce, I really hope I can do something with it as it's a lovely tree. I have really not treated it very well, as in, I hardly watered it and just did nothing with it. But it still died. I mentioned in a previous message that it initially developed brown spots before all the leaves turned brown so I had to remove them.

TheGreenMan · July 2021

I think you’ve answered your own question.

You have to water plants in pots.

The pot is also really small and there will be no nutrients left in the compost if it’s three years old.

Put it in some new compost; give it a thorough watering; keep it watered especially if you get a hot and dry spell and then see if anything new pops up from it.

I give mine a proper full drink once a week in the summer and sparingly over winter and spring. I feed it once a fortnight in late spring early summer.

I also change the bottom third of the compost each year.

Mine is a year older than yours.

thegrimreaper0507 · July 2021

JamesSB said:

I think you’ve answered your own question.

You have to water plants in pots.

The pot is also really small and there will be no nutrients left in the compost if it’s three years old.

Put it in some new compost; give it a thorough watering; keep it watered especially if you get a hot and dry spell and then see if anything new pops up from it.

I give mine a proper full drink once a week in the summer and sparingly over winter and spring. I feed it once a fortnight in late spring early summer.

I also change the bottom third of the compost each year.

Mine is a year older than yours.

Wow, your tree looks amazing. Thank you so much for the advice, I'll try a larger pot with fresh compost and see how that goes.

I have been giving it an organic seaweed feed once a week - do you think that's doing more harm than good?

Dovefromabove · July 2021

I grew mine from a cutting some years ago. It’s now a similar size to @JamesSB ‘s bay.

It’s in a large terracotta pot
in a mix of John
Innes No 3 and horticultural grit in a ratio of approx 3:1. The pot is raised up on blocks to enable it to drain freely (and discourage ants).

I water it at least twice a week from early March until the end of September using at least a large watering can full each time.

More water more frequently in hotter weather (not this year so far 😒).

Although bays need good drainage they need plenty of water … they just shouldn’t stand in soggy compost.

This is why the mix I use works so well … ordinary multipurpose-purpose compost is fine for vegetables and tubs I’d summer bedding but it is not suitable for long term planting of trees and shrubs.

I feed with a long term general feed in the spring, and with dilute seaweed two or three times during the summer.

We (it’s a two person job) take it out of the pot and replace as much compost as possible (without damaging the roots) every other year in the spring.

I hope you can save your tree but it’s in a pretty poor state … I won’t hold my breath 😞 … you might need to start again, doing it properly … remember a plant in a pot is a living thing totally dependent on humans for food and water … and besides that, it costs you a lot of money 😲

This is mine

Excuse the lacy hostas, the slugs are rampant this year 😠

Bay Tree - Dead or Alive?

Posts