Sage Garden Herbs - Bay Rum - 1.5 foot tall plant

Bay Rum - 1.5 foot tall plant

CAD $39.95

Currently Available: Pre-Book now for pick up in May, 2012

Description: A gem of an herb: rare, beautiful and wonderfully fragrant! Bay Rum is less a culinary herb compared to its tasty cousin Allspice, but world renowned as the essential ingredient in a variety of colognes. Crush a leaf and the warming aroma will linger with you all day.

The Bay Rum plants available for pre-booking are larger, 1-2 foot tall specimens. The larger size gives you a significant head start on establishing a gorgeous container specimen, and you can certainly start harvesting right away.

Latin Name: Pimenta racemosa
Main Uses: Living Aromatherapy, Spice Plant

Zone Hardiness: Tropical
Exposure: Diffused light outdoors / bright light indoors
Ht: 90+ cm. (3+ feet) as a houseplant

Bay Rum - 1.5 foot tall plant

CAD $39.95

Pruning: Pinch stem tips regularly to keep plants bushy. Harvest regularly through the active growing season. Avoid cutting deep into woody stems.

Harvesting: Harvest fresh Bay Rum by either cutting half leaves, or by trimming stem tips.

Growing in Containers: Very well suited to containers.

Fertilizing (Containers): Add up to 50% Sea Soil compost to your potting mix. Fertilize every two weeks with a balanced organic plant food during the active growing season. In addition, using Sea Magic kelp weekly improves the over all health of your plants, increases stem strength, root development, and resilience to diseases.

Watering (Containers): This plant loves to be well watered during the summer months. Water deeply and check regularly.

Growing in Mixed Planters: Not well suited for mixed planters.

Fertilizing (Garden): Not well suited to in-ground gardens.

Watering (Garden): Not well suited to in-ground gardens.

Bay Rum - 1.5 foot tall plant

CAD $39.95

Suitability for Indoors: Excellent houseplant!

Exposure: Brightest available.

What about Grow Lights? Grow lights are not required, but will keep plants actively growing during the short daylight hours of winter.

General Indoor Care: This variety is happy when grown warm year round. Bring indoors by Labour Day, and choose a location that is bright and never gets below 15 C. Although Bay Rum requires shade outdoors during the summer, it is best to provide a bright location when growing indoors. If leaves become sun scalded, move away from direct exposure to sun. Avoid heat/air conditioning vents. To improve humidity for your plants, set up a pebble tray; this is simply a layer of rocks set on the plant's saucer (not in the pot, but below it!). Any water that runs through the drainage holes is captured among the rocks and evaporates up around the plants. Rinse plants under fast flowing fresh water every few weeks to remove dust and significantly reduce the chance of pest problems.

Indoor Container Suggestions: Minimum deep 6" pot with excellent drainage. The ultimate size of this variety is very much influenced by the size of container you choose. However, pot up in increments of 2".

Winter Fertilizing: Repot or refresh soil in fall, when bringing pots indoors. Add up to 25% quality compost. No additional fertilizing is required between October and January. As light levels go up, and new growth emerges, start fertilizing monthly, using a balanced organic plant food. If growing under lights, fertilize bi-weekly right through winter. Non-organic fertilizers are not recommended, as these can cause burning or difficult-to-manage changes in the soil.

Winter Watering: Water deeply when top inch of the soil feels dry to the touch. Check soil moisture at least once per week. As daylight hours increase, watering requirements will also increase.

Special Instructions: During the transition from summer to winter - especially where plants move from outdoors in - Bay Rum can experience some stress. A common symptom of this stress is a certain amount of leaf drop. Don't worry if this occurs, new growth will follow shortly. Pay attention to avoid over watering during this period - only water as the top inch of soil dries out.

Links to More Information:

Tropical Spice & Fruiting Plants

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