Keep well-watered during the growing season and feed with a slow-release fertiliser such as Osmacote. Clip established plants lightly twice during the summer months to retain a balanced shape, using secateurs not shears. If any weeding is required around Bay laurel, do this by hand. This is because bay has a very shallow root system which can easily be damaged by digging too near the stem.

Without pruning the tree will grow to 12m (40ft) high by 10m (32ft) wide. If left to grow this big, it will also take the lion's share of soil nutrients for several metres around. The Bay tree is however very suited to pruning, and can be kept to any height and width if suitable pruning is carried out.

Standard bays look very attractive in containers especially half-barrels. To form a bay standard, buy a young plant with as straight a stem as possible. As the plant grows, remove all lower side shoots, but keep the top side-shoots. When the bay laurel tree is about 20cm (8in) higher than the final height, cut out the topmost growing tip. Clip back the remaining side shoots to about 3 leaves. This will encourage the head of the bay laurel plant to grow and it will soon begin to form the traditional 'ball' shape. As more side shoots appear, trim them back to about 3 leaves. When the bay is fully-shaped, prune in late spring and late summer to maintain it's shape. Standard plants have a 1m clear stem beneath a 55cm head.

Propagation:
1. Seeds (sow them as soon as they are ripe). Bay Laurel seeds should be sown in the spring. Use moist, but definitely not water-saturated compost. Place the seeds on the surface and just barely cover them with dry compost. Place the container in the dark, ideally at a temperature of around 65F (21C). Success is erratic and the seeds can take as long as 3 months to sprout a shoot. But normally they take about 3 to 4 weeks. The big danger with bay seeds is that they rot before they germinate. 

2. Cuttings taken at the end of summer to early autumn. It is very difficult to be successful with cuttings. Choose ripe shoots between 9 to 15cm (4 to 6in) long using a knife - leave part of the main stem (a heel) on the cutting. Trim so that only three or for leaves remain and place the cutting in a small pot filled with potting compost. Label the plant and place it in a site with no direct sunlight (a cold frame is ideal). One essential is high humidity, so a heated propagator offers the best chance of success. The cutting will have rooted after one year or so.