Bay Trees

As you have been walking this trail, you may have noticed some small, evergreen trees with odd lumps on their leaves. These growths are particularly obvious in the summer but tend to persist throughout the winter as well. The trees? These are red bay trees. Red bay is characterized by the dark green, elongated leaves with a pointed tip. If you crush one of these leaves, it will give off a spicy-sweet aroma; this is due to oils found in the leaf tissues. Yes. This is the bay leaf used in southern cooking. The lumps? Those are created by an insect larva that tricks the tree into creating these small caverns for the larva to live inside and feed on the plant in private!