Drinks and Beverages

Most people roast their red peppers whole in the oven or over a grill, and then leave them in a plastic bag to sweat before removing the skins.

I have done my peppers a different way so at to:

• eliminate the use of plastic
• reduce the amount of electricity used in turning on a big oven
• plant the seeds of the peppers and grow more rather than killing them.

The result is easy and delicious and can be used on an antipasto board, or to garnish various dishes where you need a bit of red to provide contrast and delightful flavor.

It’s a great staple to have in store ready to use especially when you have grown your own red peppers and herbs and are keen to use them. A little jar also makes for a great gift, along with a jar of coriander pesto (link to recipe) and one of caramelized onion (link to recipe).

Red Pepper Strips in Olive Oil Yield: ½ pound (1 ½ cups) Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 25 minutes Total Time: 35 minutes Print

Ingredients

• 3 large red bell peppers (capsicum)
• 3 teaspoons olive oil, plus extra for topping up jar
• salt to taste
• 1 large clove garlic crushed (optional)
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves (optional)

Instructions

1. Place olive oil in a sauté pan or skillet on medium high.
2. Cut your red peppers from top to bottom into eight pieces each, removing white veins, seeds, and stalks.
3. Place them skin side down into hot oil in sauté pan ensuring each piece has contact with the pan surface making sure they do not overlap – you may need to use two pans.
4. Allow to cook for around five minutes, then check to see underside has blistered – like in the photo below. If not fully blistered keep them going a little longer.
5. Turn the heat down to medium, add the garlic (optional), salt, and chopped oregano leaves (optional), place the lid on the pan and allow to continue cooking for another 10 minutes.
6. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
7. Peel the skin from each piece.
8. Slice into thin strips:
9. Place tightly in sterilized jar/s – depending on the size jar you are using – makes two small jars or one larger one.
10. Add the pan juices including the garlic and oregano.
11. Top up with extra olive oil and seal.

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size: 2 heaped teaspoons
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 21 © The Homesteading Hippy Cuisine: Mediterranean

Recipe Notes

The yield is approximately 21 calories per serving, if you include the extra olive oil used in the jar. If serving straight from the pan just 16 calories per serving.

Equipment

• sharp knife
• cutting board
• sauté pan / skillet with lid

The red pepper will last for around 10 days in the refrigerator and can be used to dress up open sandwiches, over savory pancakes, pasta, and to provide color and flavor as a garnish on various meat dishes.

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It’s an age-old debate, and likely one that you’ve found yourself engaged in with old fashioned canning enthusiasts and new-age canners alike from time to time.

Do you need to sterilize your canning jars?

The short answer…. most of the time.

But if you’re unsure of whether you need to sterilize – or how, exactly, to do it – rest assured that a little bit of preparedness never hurt anyone. Knowing the exact methods you can use to sterilize your canning jars will help make your life a lot easier when it comes to getting ready for canning season this fall.

Why Do You Need to Sterilize Your Jars?

It may seem foolish to sterilize your canning jars before you are going to submit them to boiling hot temperatures during the canning process, but the reality is that sterilizing is a vital step in the food preservation process.

You must sterilize your jars to remove any lingering yeasts, bacteria, or fungi so that the food you place inside the jar is safe and not contaminated. Food that is canned inside dirty jars will spoil more quickly than normal.

Some people argue that you don’t need to sterilizing jars for water bath canning as long as the processing time is more than ten minutes, as this sterilizes the food and the jars. Many also believe that sterilization is not necessary for pressure canning.

However, it’s good to get yourself into the habit of sterilizing your jars. According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, jars, at the very minimum, need to be washed with hot water with detergent or washed in a dishwasher.

You should make sure to remove all detergent to eliminate the likelihood of odd flavorings or contamination, and also keep in mind that washing alone does not serve as a substitute for sterilization.

Don’t skip or rush the process of sterilization. Instead, consider one of these top methods for sterilizing your canning jars before you start canning.

Do I Need to Sterilize Brand New Jars?

The short answer – absolutely. New canning jars, even when pulled directly out of the box, are not sterile. A box or plastic wrap does not constitute a sterile environment, and packaged jars can be contaminated by microorganisms, dust, debris, and even chips of glass.

Washing is mandatory before every cycle of canning, regardless of the age or condition of the jars. Make a good, thorough washing the bare minimum in your sterilization process. This should be done without fail every time you can your own food.

When you wash your jars, you should inspect them carefully for any cracks. You should also remove any scales or film from hard water by soaking them for several hours in a mixture of water and vinegar.

The Boiling Water Method

You already need to get your canner ready for the canning process – so why not make good use of that time and double up by sterilizing your jars at the same time? Start by washing your jars as normal before placing them in a water-bath canner. Alternatively, you can place them on a rack set inside a deep pot. Either way, the jars should be then covered with hot water.

Bring the water to a boil and allow the jars to boil for fifteen minutes. Steam will begin to emerge from the pot. Turn off the heat and let the jars remain in the hot water. When you are ready to fill the jars, you should flip them upside down on a towel to dry – just make sure they remain hot.

If you are using this method at an altitude above 1,000 feet, you will need to add an additional minute for every 1,000 feet of elevation.

The Dishwasher Method

If you have a dishwasher – particularly one with a high-temperature setting – this is a great option for sterilizing your jars. You can start by filling your dishwasher with cold jars. Run the dishwasher either on its minimum run time setting or simply a rinse cycle – just make sure the rinse is done at the highest temperature setting possible.

You can then keep the dishwasher closed to lock in the heat. You may pull one jar at a time so that the jars stay warm while you are packing them.

The Oven Method

Sterilizing your jars in the oven is one of the easiest – and most trusted – ways to get this job done. It might take a bit longer than some of the other methods of sterilizing your jars, but despite this, still only takes about half an hour total. You can sterilize your jars while you are preparing your other ingredients for caning, which will allow you to make good use of the time spent waiting.

To get started, heat your oven to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Don’t heat it any higher – it won’t make the process go by any faster, and you might crack your jars.

Next, lay two layers of newspaper on each oven shelf – just not the floor of the oven. The newspaper needs to be away from any source of flame. If you don’t want to use newspaper, a safer alternative is to place your jars on a new, clean cookie sheet – just make sure they are level to prevent breakage and ensure even heating.

Your next step is to position the jars on the oven shelves, ensuring that the jars are not touching each other. Shut the door of the oven and allow them to sterilize for at least twenty minutes. Set a timer so you know how much time has elapsed.

When the jars are finished, you may use oven mitts to gently remove each jar and place it onto a heatproof mat. You will want to fill the jars while your ingredients are as hot as the jars.

The Microwave Method

This is another popular method of sterilizing jars, but keep in mind that it obviously should not be done with any jars that have metal in them. To do this, clean your jars as you normally would, but allow them to remain a little wet. Microwave them for thirty seconds to one minute, depending on the size of the jar.

Best Practices for Sterilizing Jars

When you are sterilizing your jars to be used for canning, there are a few tips and tricks you should keep in mind to maximize your success.

Firs, you should never use old bands if they are rusty or damaged in any way. Not only do these kinds of bands have a higher risk of contaminating your food, but they will also fail to make a good seal. Toss them, and start over.

You should remove jars from your oven, dishwasher, or other source of sterilization only when they are ready to be used. Otherwise, they can cooldown too much and will be exposed to more bacteria.

On that note, you should always sterilize more jars than you think you might need. You want to have plenty of jars on hand in case you prepare more canning ingredients than you initially thought!

When you are preparing to sterilize your jars, make sure the area around your canning surface is completely clean. There’s no point in spending all this time sterilize your jars if the rest of the area is filthy!

Your jars can easily pick up bacteria and other contaminants from the surrounding area. Therefore, any place you set your jars down – such as dish towels or bare countertops – should be clean and fresh.

Finally, you should always avoid adding old food to hot jars, and hot food to cold jars. This can cause cracking and damage.

Selecting the Best Jars for Canning

Making sure your jars are of high quality can also help make your sterilization process a little easier. Only purchase bottles or jars that are designed specifically for canning, and don’t reuse containers from around the house, as these won’t be able to hold up to the heat. Canning jars are made out of tempered glass and should not have any nicks or cracks.

Jars should have flat, gasket-lined lids. These should be accompanied by screw bands that can be reused from time to time. You can sterilize your bands exactly as you would your jars. They will also come with lids. These cannot be reused, no matter how well they are sterilized, and you will need to purchase new lids for every round of canning.

Lids should be sterilized, too, however, even when they are fresh out of the box. While this is not mandatory, it does help to preheat the lids so that you will have a better seal.

Do not boil these lids, as the boiling water can harm the rubber sealant. This can cause a poor seal that will result in the contamination of the food you have canned. Instead, just place the canning lids and bands into water that is simmering for about ten minutes. This will clean them enough to be safely used for canning.

Which Method of Sanitizing Canning Jars is Best?

There is no one hard and fast method that will work best for everybody. You can adapt any of these techniques to help suit your specific needs- you can even sterilize your canning jars over wood heat or a grill if you don’t have electricity!

Consider your current canning set-up, and think about what will be the easiest and most hassle-free for you. If you have a dishwasher, this is perhaps the most hands-off method of sterilizing your jars. However, if you’re living off the grid, this simply may not be practical.

Just remember that while sterilizing canning jars isn’t always absolutely necessary, it’s definitely always recommended. A little bit of extra cleanliness can never hurt -especially when we’re talking about being able to preserve Grandma’s famous dill pickles. You don’t want to risk those going bad in storage!

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If you have a backyard garden in one of the warmer growing zones, you’ve likely been left scratching your head a time or two over corn smut.

This disease is a fascinating – albeit troublesome – beast, found typically in small, urban gardens instead of in large, commercial productions. This disease appears on the ears, tassels, stalks, and leaves of the plant, but is most famous for destroying the ears of your corn plants.

Corn smut appears quickly, forming on the plant and releasing thousands of spores that can live in the soil for several years. If you suspect that corn smut is an issue in your garden, you should take immediate action to prevent it from spreading.

What is Corn Smut?

Corn smut is found mostly in Mexico and southern portions of the United States. This disease rears its ugly head in the late summer, just when corn is ready to be picked.

Often, the kernels will become disfigured, looking like knobby messes mixed with black and gray stains. You might notice these unattractive growths on other parts of the plant, but kernels that appear through the husk are generally more common.

Corn smut is caused by the Ustilago zeae fungus. It looks not unlike a mushroom and starts out small, but eventually grows quite large.

While this disease can appear at any time, you will usually notice outbreaks when temperatures rise in midsummer. It often becomes a problem when temperatures range between 80 and 90 degrees.

This disease is caused by fungal spores that are carried by the wind. The significance of this? You might have an infection long before you even suspect that there is a problem.

Unfortunately, ears of corn that are infected with corn smut are usually viewed as inedible in the United States. Interestingly, in some parts of Mexico, ears of corn that are infected with smut are viewed as a delicacy and consumed in a fashion similar to mushrooms. These ears are known as huitlacoche.

Despite this interesting fact, you probably don’t want to have to deal with corn smut in your garden at any time – at least, not unless you have a trade agreement with some interested buyers of the delicacy in Mexico! While corn smut can be difficult to treat, it is luckily relatively easy to prevent.

What Are the Signs of Corn Smut?

Corn smut appears as whitish-gray tumors on your corn. These tumors grow quickly and irregularly, eventually turning black and reaching up to five inches in diameter. These tumors become hard masses and while they usually remain small when found on other areas of the plant, their impact can be devastating.

It’s important that you don’t allow the corn smut tumor to open up. If it does, it will release thousands of spores. Many of these will fall to the ground, but others will be picked up by the wind or water and transported to other plants. What’s even worse is that these spores can remain in your soil, living for up to seven years in dirt and plant debris.

While corn smut more commonly appears in the late summer months, it can appear at any time throughout the growing season on any portion of the corn that is above the soil.

Any corn tissue is vulnerable to this disease, but young tissue that is actively growing is more likely to be infected. Galls will usually first develop on the ears or stalks of the plants before moving on, and will at first be composed of silvery or white tissue. The dark masses of spores appear later.

If a plant has been damaged by corn smut, it will be viewed as inedible. A damaged corn plant will be viewed as inedible in most cases, and even worse, it will spread the disease to other plants around it. Therefore, it is imperative that you take steps to prevent and get rid of corn smut before it destroys your entire patch of corn.

How to Prevent Corn Smut

Corn smut is considered an opportunistic fungus, moving through the tissues of your corn plants rapidly. While corn smut spores are more likely to enter through damaged or torn sections of the plant, they will infect ruthlessly once they get a foothold – even moving on to healthy tissues.

Pick Resistant Varieties

An easy way to prevent corn smut from ever affecting your garden is to only plant resistant varieties. Unfortunately, corn smut can infest all kinds of corn plants, from field (or dent) corn to sweet corn – even popping corn is not safe.

Luckily, there are many types of corn smut that are engineered to be resistant to corn smut. Select these when choosing seeds to plant in your garden as they will have a natural foothold against the destructive corn smut.

Corn smut resistant varieties are adapted for particular growing environments. Because corn smut takes advantage of weaknesses in the plant, it will thrive when the corn is already suffering from external conditions like excessive plant density, corn maturity issues, or drought. Smut-resistant varieties are engineered to withstand these natural stressors.

There are dozens of corn smut resistant varieties you can choose from. Some of the more popular options include:

• Brilliant
• Pristine
• Seneca Snow Prince
• Seneca Sensation
• Seneca Sugar Prince
• Summer Flavor 72W
• Silver Prince
• Fantasia
• Argent

Avoid Damaging Your Plants

A damaged corn plant is much more likely to become a breeding ground for corn smut. If you injure your plant in any way, whether by accidentally cutting it or allowing it to weaken due to poor watering or other factors, you open the door for the corn smut fungus to enter. Take care of your plants, as a healthy plant will have some natural resistance to corn smut.

When you are working near or around your plants, make sure you avoid damaging them in any way. This is especially true if you are using any mechanized equipment or tools around your corn plants, as these can easily cause damage without you noticing. Try to weed by hand in order to give you a greater awareness of potential damage.

Monitor for Pests

Just as injury on a corn plant can provide a potential entry point for corn smut, so can a pest infestation. Pests usually infest plants by boring and chewing into the plant matter. This will create another point of entry for the opportunistic fungus.

Corn borers in particular can be devastating for a corn crop when it comes to providing entry points for corn smut infestation. You can remove these pests manually or use an insecticide to help get rid of them.

Practice Crop Rotation

Make sure you never plant corn in the same spot two years in a row. Because the fungal spores that cause corn smut can live for multiple years in the soil, you should try to find a new spot for your corn plants every year. To be completely safe, make sure you wait at least six or seven years before returning your corn plants to a specific spot. This will provide an absolute guarantee that the spores have disappeared.

Use a Balanced Organic Fertilizer

Try to avoid using fertilizer in your garden that is too heavily comprised of just one component. In particular, high nitrogen fertilizers can make an outbreak of corn smut worse. Therefore, you should try to use a balanced organic fertilizer – like aged compost – instead of a nitrogen-only fertilizer in the garden.

Interestingly, corn that is grown in soil that has high levels of nitrogen, like corn grown in barnyard manure, will be more likely to contract corn smut than corn growing in well-balanced, fertile soils. If you always grow your corn in manure or another organic fertilizer that is high in nitrogen, consider adding a bit of phosphorus. Phosphorus tends to reduce levels of corn smut.

How to Get Rid of Corn Smut

Preventing corn smut is definitely easier than treating it, but if you’re reading this article and trying to figure out ways to get rid of an infection, that’s probably not what you need to hear! Luckily, there are some quick steps you can take now to prevent corn smut from decimating your entire crop.

Remove Infected Plants

For starters, removing any infected plants is imperative. Regardless of whether galls are present on your plants, get rid of the infected plants right away. Whatever you do, do not compost it. Corn smut is famous for being able to survive extremely high temperatures, and the heat of your compost bin won’t be enough to decompose the spores. Once you spread the compost on your garden, it will reinfect the soil for a very long period of time.

Instead of composting the infected portions, remove them immediately. Either burn infected plants or bag them and throw them in the trash.

Avoid Fungicides

Some gardening informational resources suggest treating corn smut with fungicide. While this can be effective very early in the spread of the disease, you have to be on top of your game when it comes to this method of control.

You can use a copper or sulfur fungicide on a weekly basis once you first notice the disease, but if it gets past you at all to the stage of developing tumors, you will likely not be effective with a fungicide regardless of how often or how much you apply.

Unfortunately, fungicides are not an effective method of getting rid of corn smut. While fungicides, whether DIY or store-bought, chemical or organic, can be effective against other fungal diseases, they won’t touch a bad corn smut outbreak. This is because corn smut fungal spores can live in the soil for so long after they have initially been introduced.

Remove Galls Immediately

If you happen to see corn smut appearing, remove the galls right away. If you can get rid of them quickly enough, you will prevent the spores from being released into the air and infecting your other plants. Remember – once the galls burst, they make it possible for thousands of spores to be spread to the rest of your corn.

The sweetest corn is likely the corn you grow yourself. That’s why so many home gardeners choose to grow at least a few ears of sweet corn in the backyard. Unfortunately, corn smut can destroy your corn crop and ruin all of your hard work. Don’t let this happen!

Treating corn smut in the garden is easy, and preventing it is even simpler. Take these steps today, and you’ll be grateful when your corn survives through the summer.

What other tips do you have for preventing, identifying, and treating corn smut in the garden? Be sure to tell us in the comments! And do pin this valuable article on your favorite Pinterest board.

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Peeling garlic can be a sticky, tedious task. The husks are often evasive and the more you handle garlic, the harder it is to work with. Once those garlic oils get between your fingers or under your fingernails it’s easy to feel defeated.

But with a few simple tricks, you can take your garlic prep skills to the next level by saving time, patience and energy. Plus, you may be able to impress your guests with a parlor trick or two.

Trick Number 1: Roll It Out

Rolling out garlic is one way to get the husk out without even touching the garlic cloves. This is a great option for people with glasses who tend to touch their eyes on accident while cooking. The process is pretty simple.

First, remove the desired cloves from the garlic, cut off the base ends and set them aside. Then, insert one or two cloves into a garlic roller. This simple silicone tube is hollow on both ends to allow the peels and clove to separate and fall out.

With your cloves inside the roller, use your hands to work the roller as if you were rolling dough:

The garlic will drop out intact and the husks can be picked through and thrown out to the compost pile:

Trick Number 2: Smash and Grab

This move is a little louder but a fun one for kids or guests who need something to do in the kitchen. It is very effective but not the best if you intend to use whole cloves in your dish.

First, remove the cloves from the garlic and cut off the bases. Then, find yourself a flat tool and a cutting board. The flat tool can be anything from a butter knife to a wooden spatula – just something that provides you with a level surface.

Take your garlic and position it on your cutting board with the flat tool on top.

Then, use the palm of your hand to drive down the garlic:

The impact will split open the clove on the cutting board. You can then pinch the top of the clove and give it a shake to separate the husk.

Trick Number 3: Center Cut

This method is a bit more common but involves more work by hand. This method requires more hand dexterity and practice with a knife. So if you’re prone to accidents in the kitchen this one may not work out for you.

Separate cloves as before and select one to work with:

Using a sharp paring knife, slice down through the husk, being careful not to cut all the way through. Make your vertical cut from the tip of the clove to the bottom:

Then, once you’ve made the cut, you should be able to unwrap the husk and work with the finished clove:

From here, you can finish your cut to remove any inner garlic starts.

Trick Number 4: Whole Bulb Peel

If you have a large group or a special need for several cloves of garlic at once, this method tops the list. Instead of handling one or two cloves at a time, you can peel dozens of cloves in seconds. This takes a bit of grip strength to perform correctly.

First, cut ends from the cloves and separate them. You’ll need two mixing bowls that are the same size, or a shaker. Small plastic containers with lids also work. Insert the cloves into the mixing bowl or shaker and secure them together with your fingertips.

Shake the makeshift tumbler vigorously for a few seconds:

When finished, remove the top bowl and sift through the wreckage. You should be able to pick out the cloves from the husks with ease. There may be one or two left and you can use one of the other tricks listed above to finish the job:

Trick Number 5: Soaked to Perfection

This method is a bit more involved but a better option for those with less strength, dexterity or aggression. If the methods above aren’t feasible for you, try to give your garlic a soak. There shouldn’t be a noticeable loss of flavor, but working with water may be a little more of a mess.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Then, cut your cloves from the bulb and set them aside. Once the water reaches a rolling boil, turn off the heat and drop your cloves inside:

After about 5 minutes, use a perforated ladle or tongs to retrieve your cloves:

The outer husk will have softened and you can peel it easily with your fingertips. If they aren’t coming off easily, put them back in for a minute or two and try again:

The health benefits and flavor of garlic are hard to pass up. And if it seems like too much work to peel each clove by hand, give these tricks a try. Whether you are adding garlic to a dinner meal or that next batch of canned asparagus, give one of these methods a try. You’ll never go back to peeling garlic the hard way again.

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When you have grown a herb garden, you are naturally keen to use your produce to make those long lazy afternoons around a grazing table memorable and what better way to use up your homegrown coriander, mint and a lemon from the home orchard than for this recipe.

We all know about pesto made with basil and pine nuts but coriander (cilantro) with cashew nuts makes a delicious pesto to be served on an antipasto board with a variety of cheeses, dips, homemade bread and delicious goodies like caramelized onions (link to caramelized onion recipe) and roasted red peppers (link to roasted red pepper recipe), nuts and grapes, plus a glass of red wine!

Yield: ½ pound Coriander Pesto Recipe Print Prep Time 6 minutes Total Time 6 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups cilantro/coriander leaves – packed fairly tight
• ¼ cup mint leaves – packed fairly tight
• ½ cup roasted cashews (salted or unsalted – if using salted you won't need extra salt)
• 2 garlic cloves crushed
• juice of one large lemon
• salt and pepper to taste
• ¾ cup olive oil plus a little extra
• 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Wash your coriander leaves carefully, removing any yellow or damaged leaves, and do the same for the mint – using leaves only and not the stalks.
2. Place the coriander and mint leaves in a food processor along with the crushed garlic, Parmesan, cashew nuts and lemon juice and start the motor. If you are living off grid and are not into electrical appliances then you can use a mortar and pestle to grind the pesto.
3. Pour in the olive oil in a slow steady stream, while the motor is running, until the pesto is finely chopped. If doing it by hand add a little olive oil at a time to your mortar while grinding.
4. Stop the motor and add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Place your pesto into the sterilized jars, using the extra olive oil to cover the top of the pesto so the leaves don’t get a chance to oxidize and go black, seal with the lid and place in the refrigerator.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

40

Serving Size:

2 teaspoons
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 50 © The Homesteading Hippy Cuisine: Italian

This product lasts for around 7 days in the refrigerator – if your guests and family can leave it alone that long! If preparing pesto for a special occasion I usually leave a note on the jar stating the event it is for, and the date so it doesn’t disappear from the refrigerator.

I find it great for adding to a grazing platter; as an addition to homemade pizza; on toasted ciabatta bread or to spice up chicken wraps, or over lamb, as in the photo below:

It is also great for adding to plain pasta:

Did you try this no-cook recipe? Let us know in the comments below. And if you haven’t, be sure to pin it on one of your Pinterest boards for later!

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There’s nothing quite like a crunchy bay leaf to lend a savory flavor to your soups, stews, or stir fries. If you’re familiar with growing herbs and are looking for a more challenging option, you might want to consider growing the bay leaf plant.

Also known as bay laurel, sweet bay, and laurel, this plant is a fun one to grow. With an aromatic flavor and the ability to be dehydrated and preserved for months of use, it can be used in a variety of recipes.

What is a Bay Leaf?

Bay leaves come from the bay leaf tree. This seasoning is commonplace, and it’s easy to forget that the leaves of this plant come from a tree and not from a low-lying herb (which is much more common in most homesteaders’ gardens).

You can easily grow a bay leaf tree, but you will need to remember that this tree can grow up to fifty feet tall. Native to the Mediterranean region, it cannot be grown in all regions.

The bay leaf tree is believed to be one of the oldest species of cultivated trees. In fact, it was once made into a wreath to crown winners of ancient Greek games – like the Olympics. Now, bay leaves are produced all over the world, but you do need to have the proper climate to do it.

Bay leaf trees can only be grown in USDA plant hardiness zones 7 and warmer. Unless you plan on growing a dwarf version inside your home or in a greenhouse, you generally cannot grow it anywhere else.

This plant is incredibly sensitive to frost, requiring full exposure to the sun and blooming only in the spring and summer months. It has rigid, leathery leaves that have strong mid-ribs. The plant releases an aromatic oil that is a culinary favorite. While this tree is easy to care for, you must make sure it is well-protected from the elements.

Types of Bay Trees

If you are looking for a bay tree to plant in your garden, there are very few cultivars from which to choose. The most popular is L. nobilis, which has several sub-varieties.

There are technically six plants that are referred to as a bay leaf, but for simplification purposes, this article will focus on the bay laurel. However, you may also hear bay leaves referred to as the Indian bay leaf, malabathrum, West Indian bay leaf, Indonesian bay leaf, California bay leaf, or Mexican bay leaf.

L. nobiliis is usually cultivated for culinary and ornamental purposes. Aurea, a type of L. nobilis, has yellowish foliage, while L. nobilis f. Angustifolia is a willow-leaved laurel with thin, narrow leaves.

All of these varieties can be purchased online, or at your local garden center.

How to Plant a Bay Leaf Tree

The bay leaf tree requires lots of fertilizer, so it’s best to plant this tree in well-drained soil with lots of organic compost. You can also grow this plant in a container, but you will need to provide extra fertilizer to make up for what the plant depletes from the soil.

Plant you rtree at the same level in the soil that it was grown in within the nursery pot. You should transplant in the early spring when the plant is still somewhat dormant. This will help reduce shock and make it easier for the plant to adjust.

Bay trees are gorgeous ornamental plants, and you can grow them from cuttings. These should be taken in late summer and placed in a soilless medium.

You can also engage in a unique process known as air layering to propagate a bay tree. All you need to do is wound the tree in the center and pack the wound full of sphagnum moss. Roots will form in the wound, and you can then cut it off and replant it.

If you are planting your bay tree directly in the ground, the easiest way to do this is to imply start with a plant purchased at a nursery. While growing a bay tree from cuttings or air layering may be less expensive, there is a huge margin for error here, particularly for the novice gardener. Cuttings can be difficult to root, and there’s no turning back if you’ve done it incorrectly.

Instead, plant a new bay plant in the spring or early summer months. Provide about six feet between plants that are being grown as a hedge, and even more if you don’t want the trees to serve this purpose.

In containers, your plant should be grown in a container that is at least a foot in diameter – but you will need to transplant it into a container that is 18 inches or larger once the plant matures. You may also need to repot your plants every other spring.

When planting your bay tree, be careful as you break the root ball of the plant. You should cut off any damaged or overgrown roots before inserting the plant into the hole (which, again, should be as deep as the container in which the young plant was purchased in). Cover the hole with soil and water deeply.

The ideal soil pH is between 6 and 8. You can improve your pH by gradually adding compost or other natural fertilizers to the soil.

Caring for Your Bay Tree

If you are growing bay tree in a container, you should fertilize it every three weeks during the spring and late summer months. You don’t need to fertilize plants grown outdoors quite as often. It should’ve noticed that beans make a great companion plant for the bay tree, as they help reduce pests and supplement the soil with extra nitrogen.

Bay trees must be protected from heavy winds and precipitation. The wood of this plant is not terribly resilient or rigid, so you need to make sure you have systems in place to support the place and harbor it from the elements. You can train your plant to a topiary or a trellis, but this should be done when the tree is young. You must do this carefully to avoid injuring the plant.

Once your bay tree is secured in a container or in the ground, make sure it receives average temperatures between 45 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Sunlight should be consistently provided from the south or east.

You only need to water the plant regularly when the plant is young or if you are growing directly in the ground. Check the soil regularly to make sure it is relatively dry, and reduce watering during the fall and winter months.

Bay is not picky when it comes to soil conditions. It prefers soils that are airy and well-draining, and does not grow as well in heavy clay soils. This can cause waterlogging and nutritional deficiencies in your tree.

If you are growing bay as a potted plant, you will want to allow the soil to dry out as the autumn months approach. Soil should remain dry between waterings, which will help prevent fungal issues and disease.

In general, you should avoid soggy roots, which can cause serious damage to the plant. Water moderately and makes sure the container or location in which you are growing your bay tree has plenty of drainage material.

When planted in the garden, bay trees can grow as tall as fifty-five feet. However, it is very easy to keep your plant smaller than that through regular pruning. Most gardeners will keep their plants at eight feet or smaller to conserves pace. You don’t necessarily get better tasting leaves as the plant grows larger.

In the spring, your plant will form condensed clumps of yellow flowers. These will be followed by purple blossoms with single seeds. Because of this gorgeous show of color, the plant is often pruned into a topiary shape. You can train the trunks into braids as well.

Bay trees make a great addition to the garden because they help keep out moths and other pests. You can even use the dried leaves to repel bugs, or you can add them to a smoker to repel pests and add a nice aroma to your property.

There are very few pests and diseases to which bay is prone, largely because it emits such a powerful aroma that most bugs don’t want anything to do with it. However, you may notice that leaf spot appears as a regular problem with your bay plants.

This disease is typically caused by overwatering. If you allow your roots to sit in water and become sodden, they will develop a fungal growth that can stunt new leaf development.

To prevent this, make sure your containers have a dense layer of drainage material at the bottom. You can also add extra drainage holes to make it easier for water to trickle through.

If your plant is growing in the ground, you can improve drainage by adding sand or crushed rock to the soil. Adding rich, organic compost can also help add nutrients, which helps your plant fight off diseases of all kind.

You might notice that the leaves of your plant become yellow over time. This is normal to an extent; your plant will naturally produce yellow leaves as new growth appears. These will be shed as the new growth takes over.

However, yellowing can also occur in containers, and this is typically caused by nutrient deficiency. You can add compost or a general-purpose fertilizer every other week to improve the nutrient content of the soil.

Yellowing can also be caused by root damage (usually directly related to wet soil) or cold water damage. Providing proper care and pruning damaged wood in the springtime can help reduce the impact that yellowing has on your bay tree leaves.

Pruning Your Bay Tree

For outdoor and indoor plants alike, remember to prune as the plants outgrow their surroundings. Regardless of whether your tree is grown as a shrub, a topiary, or a full-sized tree, you will want to remove any damaged or dead leaves or branches each spring.

You can prune mature trees thoroughly, but remember that regrowth will be slow. Instead, conduct a moderate pruning session every other year to maintain green foliage while the new growth develops. Try not to remove more than a third of the plant at a time.

If you want to maintain a manageable shrub, simply remove lower leaves and buds. You can also trim any suckers or branches that are low on the shrub. You should prune topiary specimens in the summer, which will promote dense growth. This can be done all the way back to the leaf nodes.

Harvesting Bay Leaves

You can harvest bay leaves at any time – usually, as soon as they are big enough to use. The best flavor will come from larger, older leaves. Clip them whole and try your best not to damage the stem. Lay the leaves out flat to dry, and then either crush or use them whole.

You can harvest bay leaves at any time throughout the year. Flavor is the best in the summer, but larger leaves will have more fragrance than tender young growth,

Preserving Bay Leaves

While bay leaves can be used fresh, you have several options when it comes to preserving your bay leaves for long term use. One of the most popular is dehydration. You can gather the leaves in bundles and tie them together to dry in the sun, or dry them in a commercial dehydrator. They can also be dried at a low temperature (about 100 degrees) in the oven.

Alternatively, you can freeze your bay leaves. Simply place the leaves in a plastic container or freezer bag and place it in the deepest section of your freezer. This will allow the temperature of the plant to drop more quickly, preserving the fresh flavor and texture of the leaves, you can store them in the freezer for three months without losing any flavor.

Using Bay Leaves in the Homestead Kitchen

Bay leaves are an essential ingredient in the classic bouquet garni herb mixture. This mixture is often used in the preparation of poultry, stoups, and stews. You can also use bay leaves on their own, either dried or fresh, to season meat, fish, poultry, soups, sauces, stews, grains, and vegetables.

Remember that your usage of bay leaves will depend largely on the method you implemented to preserve them. Dried leaves are best suited for slow-cooked dishes, such as soups. When served fresh or frozen, bay leaves taste best in foods like risottos, fish, poached dishes, and sausages, as they will offer a more subtle flavor.

Are you growing a bay tree in your homestead garden yet? Even if you live in an area that experiences a warmer climate, bay leaves are a culinary staple that should be in any homesteader’s kitchen – and you can save some money and trips to the grocery store by growing a bay tree in a container inside your home.

This plan provides great visual interest to the landscape, and also helps to spruce up your cooking. With so many potential benefits in the kitchen as well as in the garden, this tree is one you absolutely need to give a try.

And why not pin this article on your favorite Pinterest board to have it for later?

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