Herbariuma Backpackers project
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Madeira laurel

Laurus novocanariensis

Family · Lauraceae · Irritating

EdibleAromatic
Madeira laurel (Laurus novocanariensis)Madeira laurel (Laurus novocanariensis)
Frank Vincentz, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz, CC BY-SA 4.0

The laurel of Madeira and the Canaries, one of the four trees forming the canopy of Madeiran laurisilva. It is the commonest tree in that forest and the first one you recognise by smell.

Where it grows

Oak woods · Uplands · Streams and ditches

Also known as

Canary laurel

In flower
In fruit

How to tell it

Alternate, lance-shaped, leathery glossy leaves that smell strongly of bay when crushed. Young shoots reddish and hairy. In the vein axils beneath there are domatia, small hairy pockets visible against the light. Oval berries turning from green to black. Range: Madeira and the Canaries, absent from the mainland.

What it is confused with

Azores laurel

Laurus azorica

Harmless confusion

They are siblings and are told apart by where they are: the Azorean one in the Azores, this in Madeira and the Canaries. Neither is harmful and both serve as seasoning.

Open sheet →

What it is for

A seasoning leaf in Madeiran cooking, and the wood of the bay-stick skewers that are a festival dish there. The timber also served in shipbuilding. The berries are not eaten.

Traditionally used as food. This is not permission to eat it.

Sources