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Monday, December 3, 2012

In the Garden Spotlight: Basil

Basil is by far the easiest plant I have grown...EVER!  Basil needs sun, water and room to grow.  If your plant gets too tall or bushy, chop of a piece and add it to your salad, make pesto or even Basil Lemonade!
Purple Opal Basil

My favorite varieties are Dark Purple Opal, Fine Verde and Genovese Basil.  All three of them are great in pesto and the purple adds a bit of color to salads or even pizza!
Fine Verde Basil
Companion Plants for Basil are: tomatoes, peppers, oregano, asparagus and petunias.

From the Growing from Seed page:
Sow seeds outdoors when soil is warm and temperature does not drop below 65°F. Basil can also be started indoors 4-6 weeks before planting out. Seeds usually germinate within 7 days of planting.

Seedlings need 6-8 hours of sunlight .  Basil can be grown indoors on a nice sunny ledge or windowsill or outdoors in a sunny spot.

Make successive sowings for continuous summer supplies. Pinch back flower stalks as they appear to keep plants from bolting.  Basil prefers rich well-drained soil.

I have found Easy to grow Herbs very helpful.

Doesn't that sound easy?  I found a basil plant at my local supermarket for $4.  For $4 at Mary's Heirloom Seeds you can get a full pack of organic, non-gmo Basil seeds.  That's a possible 35 basil plants!!!

Want to grow your own?  Enter to win the Seeds in a Stocking Giveaway!  ENDS December 4th at Midnight!  Win it for yourself or give as a gift.

This is a series!  Did you miss the previous spotlights?
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7 comments:

  1. AngieOuellette-TowerDecember 5, 2012 at 8:19 AM

    I agree - Basil is one of the easiest herbs to grow. I'll have to try the purple variety sometime. Stopping by from Adorned From Above blog hop.
    Thanks
    Angie
    godsgrowinggarden.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownDecember 6, 2012 at 3:32 PM

    I grew basil in our garden last summer- it was great to have on hand for cooking. And youre right- it is easy to grow!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Heidi@OneCreativeMommy.comDecember 7, 2012 at 12:47 PM

    My basil failed this summer. I can't wait to plant more. I missed it. Thanks for sharing this week at One Creative Weekend! Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The Busy Bee'sDecember 7, 2012 at 8:04 PM

    I want to grow basil next year. I love the flavor.
    Thanks for linking up at the Adorned From Above Blog Hop.
    Adorned From Above,
    Debi.
    The Busy Bee's,
    Myrna and Joye.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Betsy PoolDecember 11, 2012 at 11:15 AM

    Mmmm - basil is one of my favorite herbs!! Thanks for linking up at Romance on a dime last Tuesday!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Adorned From AboveDecember 12, 2012 at 2:49 AM

    I love basil. I always have iThanks so much for sharing at Wednesday's Adorned From Above Blog Hop.
    http://www.adornedfromabove.com/2012/12/7-recipes-and-wednesdays-adorned-from.html
    Debi @ Adorned From Above
    Joye and Myrna @ The Busy Bee's
    Linda @ With A Blastt in my garden in the summer.

    ReplyDelete
  7. JessicaDecember 16, 2012 at 10:54 AM

    When my husband was better about tending to our garden, we used to grow basil, and you are so right- it just kept on going! How I miss just stepping into my backyard to grab some basil fresh off the plant to add to my favorite pasta dishes....

    ReplyDelete

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-Mary