The Jovial Portuguese Laurel
If you’re searching for a shrub that can provide a bright and cheery look to your garden all year round, the Portuguese laurel (otherwise known as ‘Prunus lusitanica’ or ‘cherry bay’), is a good choice to make. Easy to grow and manage, it is perfect for any novice or experienced gardener to cultivate – its great ability to be shaped makes it ideal for any topiarists too.
As one of the UK’s leading horticultural nurseries, we have obtained a great selection of Portugal laurel that can help your garden to be at its vibrant best.
What Is The Portuguese Laurel?
As the name suggests, the Prunus lusitanica is native to the areas around the Iberian Peninsula – not just Portugal and Spain, but also southwestern France, Morocco and Macaronesia. Found relatively rarely in the wild, this particular Iberian laurel is found along mountain streams, preferring sunshine and moist, but well-drained soil – it’s also drought-tolerant too.
An evergreen hedging plant, similar to Bay laurel (in fact, it’s sometimes confused with it), the Portuguese variety is characterised by its small fragrant white flowers in the summer, and small red fruits that turn black in the autumn. The plant is easy to grow in most soil types and conditions and is extremely hardy against the wind.
Within 20 years, it can grow to heights exceeding 39ft (12 metres), with its ultimate spread being wider than 26ft (8 metres). Having a medium growth rate, Portugal laurel is easy to maintain and shape – only needing a single trim every year in the late summer.
Caring For Prunus Lusitanica
The best times to plant Portuguese laurel is in spring or the autumn – as long as it doesn’t freeze. Although it appreciates full exposure to sun, it does still tolerate part shade and a blend of soil mix and regular garden soil is perfectly appropriate.
If planted as part of a hedge, there should be around 3ft (1 metre) between specimens to ensure that they grow without suffocating. During its first year of growth, it should be watered regularly and pruning should be performed in late spring or early summer.
Shop Portugal Laurel With Us
Our selection of Portuguese laurel has been sourced from the same trusted growers for many years now. Not only does this great working relationship allow us to obtain some of the best specimens around, we are also in a position in which we are able to sell these beautiful hedging plants on for a great value price. This is just one of the reasons why our horticultural nursery is considered as one of the best in the area.
Feel free to take a look around our range of laurel hedging and remember to click on each product to learn more about their cultivation. All orders made with us that are priced over £300 will be subjected to FREE delivery, so it’s well worth your while in browsing our other fantastic garden plants; from yew hedging to bamboo, tree ferns to flowering shrubs and much more.
Have Any Questions Or Need Some Horticultural Advice? Get In Touch With Us!
If you have any additional questions that you would like to ask about our Portuguese laurel or any of our other products, as well as gardening matters in general, we would be delighted to speak with you! Give us a call today on 01509 621 300.
Live in-or-around the East Midlands? You can visit our horticultural nursery for yourself! We’re based in Leicestershire, at (the land adjacent to) 84 Melton Road, Barrow Upon Soar, LE12 8NX. Our opening times are: MON-FRI 9 am-5 pm. SAT 9 am-4 pm.
