“Bestow an award or praise in recognition of an achievement” (Oxford Language. That’s one definition of “Laurel” and aptly named for this spring flowering evergreen: Cherry Laurel (prunus laurocerasus). Always a welcome sight signaling winter’s end. These were in Asheville, North Carolina yet quite different from the Carolina Cherry Laurel whose flowers and leaves tend to be more droopy. Cherry Laurel is also named Common Laurel and English Laurel adding to naming and identification confusion. Copyright 2024 Pamela BreitbergThis shrub seems small and perhaps is a young planting. Cherry Laurel can reach five to fifteen feet in height and a good choice as a hedge. It does have the potential to become invasive since its leaves are evergreen and animals drop its seeds in other areas. The fruit is a small cherry in the autumn; yet carefully edible in only small quantities. The fruit contains small amounts of hydrogen cyonide. The wood smells of almonds when crushed. This Laurel should not be confused with the popular holiday wreath material of Bay Laurel. Copyright 2024 Pamela BreitbergThe Cherry Laurel flowers remind me of Lily of the Valley flowers; instead blooming on an evergreen shrub and lacking the pungent sweet smell of Lily of the Valley. Copyright 2024 Pamela Breitberg
