Lavr the Noble

Family - laurel. Homeland - the Mediterranean. A small evergreen tree or a bush with leathery leaves. Flowers are small white or cream, located in the axils of the leaves. Fruit - black with a blue tint, inedible berry, 10-15 mm in size. The leaves and fruits of the laurel contain specific essential and fatty oils, widely used as taste, technical and therapeutic means.

Noble laurel - one of the oldest plants of our planet. The very name of the "laurel" comes from the Celtic "blauer", which means "green" and shows that this plant is not exposed for the winter, that is, evergreen.

The plant is very decorative and unpretentious. It grows well in room conditions.

The crown of the laurel of the noble is easy to form, the bush can be given the original shape of a ball, cone, pyramid or grow it in a die. In the autumn-winter time, with a well-formed crown, you can tear off several leaves daily and use it in home cooking. As a houseplant laurel was used since the middle of the XV century.

♦ Accommodation. The plant is very unpretentious, easily adapts to both sunny and shady places. In the summer it is better to keep it in the garden, on the balcony, on the open loggia. In winter, the laurel can grow in the kitchen, as well as in bright cool rooms at a temperature of 3 - 5 ° C.In the room, a laurel can grow to 12 to 15 years. In the older age the plant is irreplaceable for a winter garden.

♦ Care. In summer during hot weather requires intensive watering. Water should be water at room temperature. In the winter, irrigation is rare, but the drying of the soil coma should not be allowed. In hot rooms, several times a day, sprinkle with warm water.

The soil for planting a laurel in a pot must be light, water and breathable, carbonate. It is best to use the ready-made substrate "Cactus".Up to the age of five, a laurel transplant is carried out one year later, at the oldest age - 1 every 3 to 4 years. Fertilizers are introduced during the growth and development of the plant once a month. It is best to use a liquid concentrated fertilizer "Cactus" or "Palm."

♦ Pests and diseases - scabbards, worms, on the secretions of which the sooty fungus settles. When excessive watering, there are spotting.

♦ Reproduction - by seeds. From the seed, it is necessary to remove the pericarp and immediately sow it in a small pot 5 cm in size.

Application of

The leaves of the laurel of the noble fresh or dried are put into marinades, piquant sauces and sour soups, used for canning vegetables and mushrooms.