Keep Bay Close By! - Page 2

Make a medicinal bath for bladder or female reproductive systems by taking two tablespoons of Bay Leaf and berry, steep for forty-five minutes in a cup as if tea, and add to the bath.

Nicholas Culpeper, the Elizabethan Era herbalist, tells us "The Berries are very effectual against al Poyson of venemous Creatures, and the Stings of Wasps and Bees..."

OTHER USES
Crafts: Bay holds its form well when dried and the natural wood and leaves have a lovely scent, which make it a wonderful addition to an herb wreath, tussie-mussie for a spicy fragrance, bath tea bag or pot-pourri.

Cosmetic: The essential oil is often used in commercial creams, perfumes, and soaps for its natural soothing qualities. Take advantage of the same properties by adding leaves to bath water or making a lotion with a Bay infusion.

Also, use a Bay leaf infusion as a hair rinse to fight dandruff.

Around the House: Use Bay leaves in flour canisters or containers of grains to keep insects like weevils "at Bay".

To prevent silverfish damage to books or clothing, place a few Bay leaves in drawers or on bookcases.

GARDENING WITH BAY
Sweet Bay grows to large shrub or small tree size, anywhere from 25 feet up to 60 foot in it's native Mediterranean climates. Bay is evergreen, with a smooth olive-green or reddish bark and sumptuous deep green leaves up to 4 inches long. The flowers are small and yellow, and grow in small clusters.

The berries are very aromatic when dried, as is the wood quite sweet-scented. Bay laurel prefers full sun but will tolerate some shade.

Harvesting Bay leaves can be harvested any time and dried throughout the year. Choose the older leaves for harvest. Place something heavy on them when drying to prevent curling. Older dried Bay does lose its properties.

MAGICAL USES
Bay has a longstanding tradition as an important magical herb. As early as Culpeper, Bay was known for its 'mystical' properties, as evidenced by Culpeper's margin notes, which reads that Bay Laurel is a "Tree of the Sun, and under the Celestial Sign Leo, and resisteth Witchcraft very potently" as well as 'all the evil old Saturn can do to the Body of Man'...That neither Witch nor Devil, Thunder nor Lightning will hurt a Man in the place where a Bay-Tree is".
Gender: Masculine
Planet: Sun, Jupiter
Element: Fire
Deities: Aesculapius, Apollo, Daphne, Ceres, Faunus, Eros, Fides