?Bay Laurel
Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis) flowers and leaves
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Laurales Family: Lauraceae Genus: Laurus Species: L. nobilis
Binomial name
Laurus nobilis L.

The Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis, Lauraceae), also known as True Laurel, Sweet Bay, Grecian Laurel, Laurel, or Bay Tree, is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub reaching 10–18 m tall, native to the Mediterranean region. Image File history File links Laurus nobilis: Flowers and leaves. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms (as opposed to folk taxonomy). ... Divisions Land plants (embryophytes) Non-vascular plants (bryophytes) Marchantiophyta - liverworts Anthocerotophyta - hornworts Bryophyta - mosses Vascular plants (tracheophytes) Lycopodiophyta - clubmosses Equisetophyta - horsetails Pteridophyta - true ferns Psilotophyta - whisk ferns Ophioglossophyta - adderstongues Seed plants (spermatophytes) †Pteridospermatophyta - seed ferns Pinophyta - conifers Cycadophyta - cycads Ginkgophyta - ginkgo Gnetophyta - gnetae Magnoliophyta - flowering plants Adiantum pedatum (a fern... Classes Magnoliopsida- Dicots Liliopsida- Monocots The flowering plants (also called angiosperms) are a major group of land plants. ... Young castor oil plant showing its prominent two embryonic leaves (cotyledons), that differ from the adult leaves An example of a trimerous and non-eudicot flower: Magnolia Dicotyledons or dicots are a group of flowering plants whose seed typically contains two embryonic leaves or cotyledons. ... Families Atherospermataceae Calycanthaceae Gomortegaceae Hernandiaceae Lauraceae Monimiaceae Siparunaceae The Laurales are an order of flowering plants. ... Genera Many; see text The Lauraceae or Laurel family comprises a group of flowering plants included in the order Laurales. ... Species Franco Azores Laurel L. Bay Laurel Laurus is a genus of evergreen trees belonging to the Laurel family, Lauraceae. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... Carolus Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as , (May 23, 1707 – January 10, 1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist[1] who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of nomenclature. ... Genera Many; see text The Lauraceae or Laurel family comprises a group of flowering plants included in the order Laurales. ... A Silver Fir shoot showing three successive years of retained leaves In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant which retains its leaves year-round, with each leaf persisting for more than 12 months. ... The coniferous Coast Redwood, the tallest tree species on earth. ... A broom shrub in flower A shrub or bush is a horticultural rather than strictly botanical category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 6 m tall. ... metre or meter, see meter (disambiguation) A metre or meter[1] (symbol: m) is a unit of length and the current base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ...

The leaves are 6–12 cm long and 2–4 cm broad, with a characteristic finely serrated and wrinkled margin. It is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants; each flower is pale yellow-green, about 1 cm diameter, borne in pairs together beside a leaf. The fruit is a small black berry about 1 cm long, containing a single seed. The leaves of a Beech tree A leaf with laminar structure and pinnate venation In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant organ specialized for photosynthesis. ... // CM, cM, Cm or cm may stand for: CM Apollo Command/Service Module (command module is one half) Cameroon, ISO and FIPS country code category management Catholic Memorial center of mass Championship Manager, a series of association football computer games Chelmsford British post code region CM Chessmaster Chief Minister of... Plant sexuality deals with the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. ... Clivia miniata bears bright orange flowers. ... Fruit stall in Barcelona, Catalonia. ... A ripe red jalapeno cut open to show the seeds For other uses, see Seed (disambiguation). ...

Uses and symbolism

Bay Laurel is the source of the bay leaves which are used for their flavour in cooking. It was also the source of the laurel wreath of ancient Greece, and therefore the expression of "resting on one's laurels". A wreath of bay laurels was given as the prize at the Pythian Games. It is also the source of the word baccalaureate (laurel berry) and thus bachelor, and of poet laureate and indeed the qualification used as an equivalent to the English A-Level. bay leaves Bay leaf (plural bay leaves) are the aromatic leaves of several species of the Laurel family (Lauraceae). ... In Greek mythology Apollo is represented wearing a laurel-wreath on his head, and in ancient Greece wreaths were awarded to victors, both in athletic competitions, including the ancient Olympics and poetic meets under his care, as well as worn by several emperors. ... View of the stadium of the Delphi sanctuary, used for the Pythian Games. ... A bachelors degree is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course that generally lasts three or four years. ... A bachelor is a man who above the age of majority who has never been married. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... An A-level, short for Advanced Level, is a General Certificate of Education usually taken during Further Education and after GCSEs. ...

Some evidence from the medical literature supports Bay Laurel having these uses:

• Antioxidative: Fitoterapia. 2003 Sep;74(6):613-6.
• Analgesic and anti-inflammatory: Phytother Res. 2003 Aug;17(7):733-6.
• Anticonvulsant (antiepileptic): Phytomedicine. 2002 Apr;9(3):212-6.

It is also widely cultivated as an ornamental plant in regions with mediterranean or oceanic climates, and as an indoor plant in colder regions. Because Brian said so An ornamental plant is a plant that is grown for its ornamental qualities, rather than for its commercial or other value. ... A Mediterranean climate is one that resembles those of the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea. ... It has been suggested that The Cool Western Temperate Maritime Climate be merged into this article or section. ...

Bay Laurel grown in a kitchen for bay leaves Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2012x3038, 623 KB) Description: Laurus nobilis, Bay Laurel, familly Lauraceae, grown in a kitchen for bay leaf. ... bay leaves Bay leaf (plural bay leaves) are the aromatic leaves of several species of the Laurel family (Lauraceae). ...

19th century illustration Image File history File links Koeh-086. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Trivia

Bay laurel leaves are used in the design of the 10 yen coin in Japan. There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ...

External links

• MeSH: Laurus - Laurus nobilis (Bay Laurel)
• MeSH: Umbellularia - Umbellularia californica (California Bay Laurel)
• MeSH: 3-oxo-eudesma-1,4(15),11(13)triene-12,6alpha-olide [Substance Name]
• MeSH: anhydroperoxycostunolide [Substance Name]
• MeSH: magnolialide [Substance Name]
• PubMed search: "Laurus"[MAJR]
• PubMed search: "anhydroperoxycostunolide" OR "magnolialide" OR "3-oxo-eudesma-1,4(15),11(13)triene-12,6alpha-olide"

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Laurus nobilis