How to Grow Basils

From the familiar sweet basil to the more exotic varieties such as cinnamon, lemon, or Tulsi (clove-flavored), all of the basils are easy to grow annuals that will perk up your salads, sauces and herbal teas.

If you haven't yet explored the exciting world of seed catalogs, be sure to check some out because you will find far more diversity of plants than is commonly available in garden shops and other stores that carry seeds. Experimenting with different types of basil will result in some delightful taste sensations and beauty in your garden.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Seeds
• Potting mix, which can be a purchased mix or a blend you make yourself with peat moss, compost, vermiculite and black cinder
• Pots or flats

1. Some of the varieties of basil include:
   
   Genova or Genovese sweet basil, often used in pesto sauce
   Lemon basil, for teas, fish marinades, salads and garnishes
   Cinnamon or Mexican spice, for teas, fruit salads, and garnish
   Licorice basil, for teas and recipes calling for licorice
   Holy, or Tulsi, basil, for teas, cooking, and healing (it's an "alterative," which is good for many different ailments)
   Red Rubin, a beautiful reddish-purple plant suitable for cooking and salads
   Thai basil, for its pungent anise flavor, excellent in spicy Asian dishes and teas
   African blue basil, for its beauty and strong sweet basil flavor

2. Fill your flats or pots. Make sure that you give the seeds plenty of room: if a seed packet has 300 seeds in it, for example, you'll want to use an entire flat. Some packets have very few seeds in them: in this case, you can use a black plastic nursery pot. After you fill your flat or pot with soil to about 1 inch of the top, gently pat it down to compress it a bit. Then give it a gentle shower with the hose.

3. Plant your seeds. Basil seeds are tiny and should be planted with just a scattering of potting mix over them. Your seed packet will tell you how deep to plant them. Cover with the recommended amount of soil, gently pat the soil down with your palm, and then water it again. Place the flat or pot in a protected place where it will get plenty of sun.

4. When your young basil plants are three or four inches tall, transplant them to a spot in your garden that has rich, composty soil and gets full sun most of the day. Space plants about eight inches apart. When they begin to send up flowering tops, snip these off and use them in teas and culinary dishes. Some basil flowers are very attractive and make delightful garnishes for salads and other recipes.

Tips & Warnings

• Many more varieties of basil exist, and it's fun to try several different types in your summer garden. Choose heirloom varieties from natural seed sources because hybrids, which are common commercially, will not reproduce "true to type"-their seeds that drop to the ground create "wonderful weeds" that can be odd-looking and tasting blends of their parent plants.