The Bay Laurel tree is an aromatic evergreen that can grow either as a large shrub or small tree reaching up to 7 to 10 meters in height. It is native to Israel and the Mediterranean region and is most well known for its dried leaves that are used as a seasoning in cuisine around the world. The tree has pale yellow-green flowers and produces tiny, black, berry-like fruit that contain one seed each.

It is believed that huge forests of laurel once covered the Mediterranean basin when the climate was more humid. These forests gradually disappeared over the years and laurel trees are now few and far between.