Is this a bay leaf by any chance?

October 22, 2020 1:52 PM

This bush is growing outside my door. Looks kinda like bay leaf...

Wondering if it can be used in cooking vs store-bought dried. Photo here. I can take more pictures if necessary.

posted by TWinbrook8 to Home & Garden (7 answers total)

Best answer: I'm pretty sure that's not a bay tree.

There's a neat app (for Andoid dunno about iPhones) which identifies plants from a photo taken with the phone: PlantNet Plant Identification
posted by anadem at 1:55 PM on October 22, 2020 [3 favorites]

Best answer: From what I have seen, the tip of the bay leaf has a pretty distinct sharp tip, whereas the leaf in your photo is more rounded. The distribution of the leaves on the stem/stalk also do not seem like bay leaf. Sorry I can't ID the plant in your photo. I am pretty confident it is not bay leaf though.
posted by eggs at 1:56 PM on October 22, 2020 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I have a bay laurel growing in a pot and it looks nothing like that. Bay leaves are pointy.
posted by esoterrica at 1:58 PM on October 22, 2020

Response by poster: PlantNet and a couple other apps seem to think it is Ilex Glabra/Inkberry although I’ve never seen flowers or berries on it. Well heck, it’s back to the grocery store.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 2:34 PM on October 22, 2020

Crush a leaf, does it smell like Bay?
posted by FleetMind at 6:01 PM on October 22, 2020

Not a Bay tree.
It looks like Illicium from the photo...when those leaves are crushed they have a kinda licorice smell - but don't cook with them!
posted by PlantGoddess at 8:55 PM on October 22, 2020

It looks like the allspice plants in my yard to me.
posted by entropyiswinning at 10:46 PM on October 22, 2020