Damaged By Cold Snap
Bay Tree Hangs on For Dear Life
Our lovely towering bay tree is no more.
Located near the main gate, the tree that supplied gardeners with fresh bay leaves for many years was severely damaged in last winter’s record cold snap.
Across southern BC, temperatures plunged to icy lows, damaging or killing many plants.
In Vancouver, the thermometer dropped to -10.6°C on January 12, the coldest since 1978.
Not only was our bay tree harmed, but a number of other garden plants, including herbs and rose bushes, were also damaged.
Bay trees originate in the Mediterranean region and can only comfortably handle lows of about -5°C, when they begin to suffer leaf damage.
Our tree has been drastically cut back, with only a single remaining limb, which has put out some green shoots.
The radical pruning upset a number of gardeners, who felt it had gone too far.
If the remaining limb stays healthy and continues to grow, the tree may eventually recover.
But bay trees are notoriously slow-growing. So even if all goes well, ours will not regain its former glory for many years.