California Laurel (Umbellularia californica)

Family: Lauraceae | Edibility: Choice Edible (4/5)

Bloom Color: Yellow. Main Bloom Time: Early spring, Early winter, Late winter, Mid spring, Mid winter. Form: Rounded, Vase.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Fruit, Nuts/Seeds

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Late Summer, Fall, Winter

Flavor & Culinary Uses

flavouring soups, stews etc. — It can be roasted and eaten or can be ground into a powder that is used with cereal flours in making bread.; A bitter quality in the seed is dispensed by roasting or parching the seed.; Fruit - raw or cooked.; The leaves are used as a condiment in cooked foods.

Habitat & North American Range

Lower mountain slopes, flatlands, hillsides etc, on various soils and often in shade. The best specimens are found in deep rich soils of valley bottoms. (Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9, Zone 10)