The bay leaf is a marvellous magical herb and great to collect at this time of year. It grows as an evergreen dioecious tree, Lauras nobilis, and is well established in Britain. Tens of thousands of years ago vast temperate forests of laurel covered tracts of Mediterranean Europe.
The laurel leaf is familiar from classical culture and the laurel wreath used as a symbol of status or victory in Greek and Roman traditions. It is the source of the word ‘baccalaureate’ now familiar in education.
The bay leaf has divers historic herbal uses.
Its essential oil contains eucalyptol and a variety of other terpenes.
It is a very useful help for ritual practises. The dried twigs burn with a crackle and give out a pungent purifying smoke. The dried leaves offer a good surface for writing messages or sigils for the expression of intention. These can then be burnt and the ashes blown into the wind according to desire.
Dai Nyth Brân January 2025
the Crows Nest 
Leave a comment