How do I 'uproot' a bay tree?

Well, I guess what I am really asking is how can I 'get rid' of my bay tree?

I know it does not sound too kind, but I have learnt at my expense that bay trees grow fast and furious!

I bought this little thing in a pot at Sainsbury many years back, and decided to plonk it in the garden, I just thought it'd take its time... but...

After a second mistake - which was to cut it back down to ground level - offshoots have sprung up everywhere and the roots are spreading, spreading, spreading. It feels a bit like The Day of the Triffids!

Is there any way I can somehow cut the roots and contain them? Or do I need to go dig them all up? Would this be the right time of year to do it?

Is there something else I could use that would 'kill' it (I feel bad just saying this!) something maybe chemical-y but that would not be too dangerous for the local birdies and foxies. and the cats....

Thanks for advice!

 

Hi Sulevia and welcome to GC.

I brouht my small bay from the UK (IoW) and somehow managed to kill it with love after a couple of years.. To be honest, I think it was the shock of the dry heat!

I don't suggest you move to Southern Portugal with your tree and no doubt someone more helpful than I will come along and give UK advice.

In the meantime, enjoy the forum.

 

Brushwood killer

 

Hi Victoria,
Oh, I think I would love to go to Portugal.... especially as I can already feel summer is on its way out here!!!
Hope you've found a local bay tree since?

Ah! Thanks Potash,
Have looked this up on the web and apparently, I should do that now (I think!)... will give it a try and try to grow another one in a pot, from one of the shoots... at least I won't feel like I've totally killed it

Thanks everyone!

 

I have a brilliant bay tree in a pot ... fresh bay leaves when needed and no trouble at all. I never knew that they could be a problem in the ground, so I am delighted that I never tried to plant it out

 

Glad to be of service I'm sure there'll be plenty more mistakes to fix from me!

I love using bay leaves in cooking too...

 

Is it a true Bay or a Laurel? Never encountered Bay but if it behaves like Laurel then they are a nightmare. And, I have never tasted the benefit of bay in a recipe. Too many Vindaloo's I guess!

Saw it down close to the ground, drill holes down into the stump and pour Brushwood killer into it. You can tie or tape a poly bag over the stump after treatment to protect wildlife.
If you want the stump out, then its all hands to the shovel!!!
Our new (mature) garden has 9 or 10 Laurels. Ive removed 4 up to now but they were so big the gaps they left needed filling and establishing before I remove more. The remaining ones are quaking, but they've got till spring now. Then its......

 

Hi Agent Orange (Agent Orange? that sounds a bit drastic for my little urban garden )

"Is it a true Bay or a Laurel?"
It is a Laurus Nobilis, sometimes called a 'true laurel'... As far as I know they are different to what is often used for hedges, the 'laurel' (cherry laurel, which can refer to Prunus Laurocerasus (UK) and Prunus Caroliniana (US) both of which will kill you if you eat their leaves.... better stick to the vindaloo

Thanks for the advice about how to go about using the Brushwood killer - do you know how long I need to wait before the thing is dead?

If you want the stump out, then its all hands to the shovel!!!
I think that's what will have to happen!

I feel for you and your laurels! Not sure if they behave as my bay tree, but mine apparently grows roots going down and horizontally, and since they can grow up to over 10m (30ft), they spread horizontally as far as they grow in height..... Wish I'd known that a few years back....

 

Hi

I think if you get into next spring and no new buds have formed at the cut then youve cracked it.

Mine are deffo the Cherry Laurel genus, and personally I dont like them. There is much more nicer and interesting stuff in the plant world.

I have heard that the cut leaves give off some form of cyanide gas and its not a good idea to drive them to the tip in a car without the windows open! Makes me wonder just what they do when you put them in a recipe.

 

OK, thanks for that... hopefully, I'll succeed in one go! :-)

 

I seem to remember seeing them used in a "killing bottle" for insects when I was growing up.

 

I genuinely hope that you aren't one my neighbours, your bay leaves come in very useful in my kitchen!

 

Bay trees can be phenomenal spreading trees. I've trimmed and cut down some chunky specimens in my time. The shoots that pop up in the ground from the main tree can soon turn into a dense copse of bay, under which very little else grows. If you want to get rid of it all then just dig it all out whenever you can. If you want to save some then dig out when dormant and stick in a big pot. You can spray herbicide to kill it, but you're still going to be left with a dead bay tree to shift.