How to Save Lanky Basil Seedlings

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By Willi Galloway
eHow Contributing Writer

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The easiest way to get a jump start on pesto season is to buy a few basil starts at a nursery. However, the problem with this tactic is that the basil seedlings offered for sale are often tall and lanky and they ultimately do not grow as well or yield as many leaves as plants grown from seed. Luckily, it’s pretty easy to salvage these less-than-ideal plants. Here’s how.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Before you plant, take a close look at your pot of basil. More often than not, nurseries seed three or four basil plants in each pot. If you plant this clump of seedlings they will grow up crowded, and most likely stunted. So it pays to separate the seedlings before planting. To separate the seedlings, slide the clump of plants out of their pot and tease the root ball apart. Gently grasp the soil near the base of one seedling and work it away from the others, trying to preserve as many roots as possible. Repeat this step until all the seedlings are separated.
Step 2

Now you're ready to plant each seedling. To encourage the seedling to grow into a stockier plant with a robust root system, you need to plant it deeply, burying the stem right up to the bottom set of leaves. The basil stem will sprout roots where it comes into contact with the soil. Prior to planting, pinch off the bottom leaves on each seedling, leaving at least two sets of leaves on top. Space the seedlings 6 to 8 inches apart.
Step 3

After planting, water the seedlings in with 2 cups of diluted fish fertilizer. You will need to pinch the basil back as it grows to encourage a big plant with lots of branches. When the plant has four sets of leaves, pinch back the top set. Make the pinch right above the next set of leaves. This will encourage two new branches to form. When those new branches have three sets of leaves, pinch the top set back as described above.
Step 4

After pinching the plant back, allow it to grow, harvesting leaves as needed. The more you harvest, the more leaves your basil will produce! If you need a bunch of basil at once you can cut the entire plant back by half in mid-summer. Just be sure to fertilize with 2 cups of diluted fish fertilizer afterwards to encourage new growth.

Comments

greenbabby said

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on 3/2/2009 i have been looking for this info for awhile. thank you for providing it.

missforty said

on 7/13/2008 Thanks!

graiestar said

on 5/29/2008 thanks! I'll be "pinching" my basil tomorrow!

Willi said

on 5/29/2008 I'm sorry! I should have explained that. To pinch back means to remove a piece of the plant. It is often called pinching back because people will pinch stems off of plants with soft stems. You can also use scissors or pruners or even a sharp knife to make the "pinch". If you make a pinch right above a set of leaves (on basil leaves grow in pairs opposite each on the stem), the basil will grow additional branches. If you look close at the point where the leaves attach to the stem you can usually see tiny leaves that will grow into branches if you pinch off the leaves above that point. It's kind of link diverting a stream, if you remove a piece of plant the plant will find a way to keep growing. Hope this helps!