WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Laurus nobilis ssp. & cvs., WUCOLS IV

How often to water sweet bay in California

In July in the Central Valley, established sweet bay in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days: about 55 gallons each time under a 10 foot canopy, about 19 gallons a week. Sweet bay is a slow growing Mediterranean evergreen, often multitrunk, prized for the aromatic leaves used as bay leaf in cooking. It favors soil that stays lightly moist without turning soggy. Established plants shrug off dry spells, but young trees need steady help while their root systems spread outward.

TreeRated for 6 of 6 zones

How often to water sweet bay, month by month

Your city
Canopy width
10 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for sweet bay and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area under the branches, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure canopy width

A tree with its canopy width marked across the widest branches and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the branches, from the tips of the outer leaves on one side to the tips on the other. A tape works, or pace it out.

Water the whole circle under the branches, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that circle.

A wider canopy means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While the tree is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry several inches down at the drip line while sweet bay is putting on new spring growth signals that it needs water
  • Leaf tips browning and curling in a hot inland garden can indicate the root zone has dried too far
  • New leaves emerging smaller and paler than the mature dark green foliage warrant a soil check
  • Yellowing leaves dropping while the soil beneath stays wet can indicate root rot from poor drainage
  • A trunk base that stays dark and damp between waterings warrants a look at drainage before another soak

How to water it

  • Water sweet bay at the drip line and beyond rather than close against the multiple trunks
  • Soak the root zone deeply, then let the top few inches dry before watering again
  • Use drip emitters or a slow soak on soil that drains freely, raising a mound in heavy clay
  • Keep wood chip mulch a few inches from the trunks to hold moisture without inviting rot
  • Move emitters outward and add more as the canopy widens with each year of slow growth

Through the seasons

Give a newly planted sweet bay consistent moisture through its first year or two while roots establish, then let the surface dry more between soakings. This evergreen keeps its leaves year round and slows its growth in cool months, so winter watering can ease back. Coastal, Central Valley, south coast and South Inland gardens can lean on cooler, damper months for part of the year, though summer still calls for regular checks. WUCOLS rates sweet bay low water on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley, on the south coast and in South Inland. It rates moderate water in the high desert and the low desert, where heat pulls moisture from the soil faster.

In pots

Potted sweet bay dries fastest in a small container through California summer heat. Check the mix two or three inches down and water when it feels dry, letting extra run from the drainage holes before emptying the saucer. Pruning a potted bay to a clipped shape is common, though frequent trimming reduces its spring flowers. Move pots to shelter or against a warm wall before frost, since a hard freeze can damage exposed roots and foliage. Ease off watering once cooler weather slows growth.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
1.07gal per sq ft in JulyLow water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
6.84 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.761.52.33.00.16JAN0.26FEB0.43MAR0.61APR0.83MAY0.99JUN1.07JUL0.95AUG0.72SEP0.47OCT0.22NOV0.14DEC0.761.52.33.00.16JFM0.61AMJ1.07JAS0.47OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 1.07 in Jul, 6.84 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Sweet Bay: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.160.310.310.740.78
Feb0.210.260.320.350.930.93
Mar0.350.430.460.521.461.52
Apr0.470.610.560.641.891.95
May0.580.830.640.782.392.45
Jun0.640.990.690.922.852.79
Jul0.641.070.7913.042.85
Aug0.60.950.740.932.792.6
Sep0.50.720.60.742.142.08
Oct0.350.470.460.531.461.49
Nov0.190.220.330.360.930.96
Dec0.120.140.260.270.650.68
Year4.86.846.27.3721.2721.08

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated low water in the Central Valley, like sweet bay. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Olive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyFig TreesFicus carica ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPomegranate TreesPunica granatumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyEucalyptusEucalyptus polyanthemoslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPine TreesPinus canariensislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTexas Red OakQuercus buckleyilow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPortuguese OakQuercus faginealow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySoapbark TreeQuillaja saponarialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyNecklace TreeSophora affinislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBailey AcaciaAcacia baileyanalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilver WattleAcacia dealbatalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen WattleAcacia decurrenslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes sweet bay, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water sweet bay in summer?

In July, established sweet bay in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days in the Central Valley, about every 27 days on the south coast and about every 22 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does sweet bay need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established sweet bay needs about 2.7 gallons a day under a 10 foot canopy and about 11 gallons a day under a 20 foot canopy. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for sweet bay change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates sweet bay separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, low water in the South Coastal zone, low water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Can I trim sweet bay into a hedge or standard?

Yes, sweet bay tolerates shearing and is often trained into clipped balls or standards. Check the root zone before and after a hard prune, since new growth pulls extra moisture. Keep the cuts light during the hottest weeks.

Why are my sweet bay leaves turning black and sooty?

Sooty mold usually follows scale insects, which leave sticky honeydew, rather than a watering mistake. Look on stems and leaf undersides for small bumps or sticky residue. Treating the scale clears the mold over time.

Is sweet bay the same plant as bay leaf from the store?

Yes, its leaves are the culinary bay leaf, and they can be picked all year round. Harvesting a few leaves does not change how the tree should be watered.

Can sweet bay handle full inland sun?

It manages full sun in cooler coastal gardens and tolerates light shade further inland. In a hot valley or desert site, some afternoon shade reduces stress on the foliage. Watch for scorched leaf edges as a cue to check soil moisture.

Why does my sweet bay have multiple trunks?

Sweet bay naturally grows as a multitrunk large shrub unless trained to a single stem when young. Spread water across the full root area beneath all the trunks. A single wet spot near one trunk leaves other roots dry.

Can sweet bay survive a frost?

It tolerates light, brief frost once established in the ground. A hard freeze can still damage or kill exposed foliage and stems. A container plant needs shelter since its roots are more exposed to cold.

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Sources