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Rosemary and bay leaf. They grow so well here in Ca, it’s criminal that they sell the leaves at 8 dollars a pop at most stores.
8 dollars? That's crazy. Especially because the plant itself isn't that hard to keep and produces an amount of leafs you will never be able to use all.
Exactly!
It's absolutely insane, I remember needing it in a pinch to make some soups, and had to buy one for 8+ dollars at my local store, and it was like 4 leaves.... I went to the plant nursery the next weekend and bought a small bay laurel for 20 bucks, and never looked back. Zero maintenance, it seems to be pretty pest tolerant, and I just put it in my backyard in a pot close enough to catch some residual water from my sprinkler, and it has been thriving ever since.
I'm in inland southern California, and I've never thought about growing bay leaves. I don't think I've seen it at my local nursery, where did you get yours?
I got them at a local nursery!
But I was also told by a plant geek friend that folks grow them on the side of the road, and there are quite a few "semi-public" (true) bay laurel trees in most places in California if you know where to find them. They grow exceptionally well here since they are a Mediterranean plant. We also have a native California bay laurel variety that grows quite well in southern California without much care at all. They taste pretty similar and it's EXTREMELY easy to forage. https://www.foragesf.com/blog/2019/10/5/california-bay-dont-buy-bay-forage-it