By Barbarak
North Yorkshire,
United Kingdom 
Is this a bay laurel? I was given a cutting from a friend in France a couple of years ago. I was told it was bay but it doesn't have aromatic leaves when crushed , it has purplish stems and quite an open habit even though I have pinched back the growing tips. Any ideas?
9 Apr, 2017
Answers
How do I add another photo to original question?
10 Apr, 2017
sorry ,it looks as though the new photo replaced the original. This is the closeup of new growth as requested byTugbrethil. My friend just said it was a bay tree cutting.
10 Apr, 2017
Well, I meant even closer than that, so I could see the stipules--the little appendages that help protect new leaves as they emerge. Their size and shape are diagnostic for many species and plant families. The fact that it has no scent argues against it being culinary bay.
I don't know about France, but in the U.S. the word "bay" is colloquially used for many laurel-like plants. More informative would be "sweet bay", or "bay laurel". Was the original communication in French?
11 Apr, 2017
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Can you show a picture of where a leaf joins the stem, especially on young growth? Also, what was the exact language when your friend told you what it was?
10 Apr, 2017