Unknown laurel stranded in time.....

Ok, I'd really appreciate some input on this one because I can't seem to find anything worthwhile anywhere.
I bought a laurel (can't for the life of me remember the variety though) in May or June of 2008.
I've been keeping it in direct sunlight ever since (south window) and give it medium watering.
It looks very healthy, not one leaf has ever fallen off or died, no bug attacks, all is great..... except..... this thing has never ever shown any sign of growth at all.
It's been about 8 months now and it might as well be made of plastic because it hasn't done anything!!!
There are small buds everywhere along its small trunk but they don't move, don't change. Man, it's the same buds that have been there since I bought the plant in June last year.
What gives?
I think I need to find out about the growth cycle of this laurel..... if it has one, lol.
This is a pic I just took of it, it's 6 inches high..... as its always been.

Let's see - bought in June - potted it up just as the vernal equinox comes along (Jun 21) - the plant, now stimulated by the increasing dark period, stops growth extension & concentrates on laying down layers of cells in cambial tissues (fattening up for the winter) - autumn comes & the plant decides to start the winter's rest, waiting for the vernal equinox to wake up - sounds about normal to me.

Al

Yep ~ It is a seasonal thing.

Your plant is a Laurus nobilis or Bay Laurel. Your bay is the type of leaf that is used in cooking. I have one potted that is a slow grower too and particularily during the first year. Even now, it sits there until a certain time in summer where it has a growth spurt.

The bright side is yours has not dropped leaves or yellowed leaf tips so you are doing something right! Be patient.

My bay laurel did absolutely nothing for the first year after I bought it and it's about the same size as yours. Then a couple of months ago I forgot to water before Thanksgiving weekend and most of the leaves and the tips of the stems died. I was sure I had killed it but it started growing again and is now covered with new leaves. I don't recommend going to that extreme but I think the indoor ones need a little stress now and then to stimulate them.

Hmmmm - I don't think I agree. Although stress is reversible, it is a potentially injurious condition that indicates a plant is operating at or near the limits it is genetically programmed to deal with. When the plant DOES reach these limits, stress turns to strain, which, if uncorrected always leads to the death of the organism. Not a rosy picture should we decide to intentionally induce stress. Lord knows, there are already enough stressful conditions we beg our houseplants to tolerate w/o intentionally inducing additional. ;o)

About defoliation: it's like turning a switch that changes the source of the tree's energy from the sun, to batteries (the tree's stored energy reserves). While some (usually young) woody tissues contain chlorophyll and are able to carry on some food-making (photosynthesis), the bulk of the food plants make comes from the leaves. No leaves - no food/energy from the sun - go to battery power.

The problem with battery power is it is finite - there is only so much of it. Whether or not a tree survives after defoliation depends on whether or not it has enough stored energy to push enough foliage to the point of maturity where it (foliage) becomes a net producer of energy, rather than a net user. This occurs at various stages, but usually at 65-75% maturity, leaves begin offering an energy return on the tree's outlay.

The state of vitality, or how robustly the tree was growing at the time of defoliation is a good measure of the likelihood of survival. The more vital (stronger) the tree @ defoliation, the greater the likelihood of survival, but the converse is also true.

Al

Well Al, I certainly didn't mean to suggest almost killing the tree, just making it's growing conditions a little more variable. Obviously defoliating the tree is not very good for it. Many of my orchids must go through a period of drought or cool weather to stimulate blooming. Not enough to do permanent damage, just enough to trick them into thinking the seasons have changed. The keys to stress are intensity, duration, and frequency. If I left the tree dry much longer it would be dead, and if it happened again it would probably not recover. I think a lot of houseplants would benefit from more variation in their environment.

So, I'm curious. Are you saying you think your plant is better off for the experience? - or can we agree that it would have been better off never having experienced the stress?

Al

Killing the top bud has stimulated the rest of the buds to start growing, similar to pinching back. Granted, what happend to my plant was rather extreme and unintentional. If nothing had happened and it had been watered normally I think it would still be exactly the same as it was before. It has now regrown about as many leaves as it lost so I think it's back to where it started.

Hey Spott, sorry your thread has gotten off track. I'm not sure what to tell you to do with your plant other than make sure it has plenty of water.

No problem, I always love to read about others' stories too.
I will of course keep doing what I'm doing, which seems to have kept it alive for the past 8 months, and I'll keep an eye on it until May/June....... at which time it should wake up a give us a bit of new growth.

You might consider taking it outside during the warmer months, most plants enjoy that more than being cooped up indoors all year round. Just remember to adjust it gradually to outdoor conditions so it doesn't get sunburned or anything.