Bayberry is a hardy shrub that grows along the Atlantic coast of North America, producing small, waxy gray berries that smell wonderfully spicy when crushed. The plant thrives in sandy soil and salty air where many other plants struggle, making it common near beaches and coastal marshes.

For centuries, people harvested bayberries in late fall to make candles. Boiling the berries releases their natural wax, which floats to the surface and can be skimmed off. This bayberry wax burns slowly and gives off a clean, pleasant scent quite different from regular tallow candles. Making bayberry candles required patience: it took about fifteen pounds of berries to produce just one pound of wax. Colonial Americans considered bayberry candles a luxury, often saving them for special occasions.

The tradition continues today, with bayberry candles popular around the holidays. Some people follow an old custom of burning a bayberry candle on New Year's Eve, believing it brings good luck for the coming year. The plant's waxy leaves also contain aromatic oils, and its ability to fix nitrogen in poor soil makes it valuable for preventing erosion along coastlines.