| There is nothing better than growing your basil and | | | | growing healthily, pinch the center shoot to encourage |
| picking them fresh for your pizza and pasta. You can | | | | side growth and prevent early flowering. Since Basil |
| even have home-made pesto as a gift! The first step, | | | | doesn't need fertilizer and rarely attract bugs, the herbs |
| of course, is to learn the basics of Basil care: how to | | | | are almost maintenance free if you have the correct |
| grow the herb, and grow it so well that you want to | | | | light, water and soil condition in place. |
| use them every day! Here is my own experience on | | | | Harvesting Basil |
| Basil care after years of herb gardening and I hope | | | | Once you see the flower buds, it will be the perfect |
| you will find the following tips helpful. | | | | time of harvesting Basil leaves because the leaves |
| First of all, Basil loves the sun, so please pick a nice | | | | contain the most essential oil at this stage of its |
| sunny spot for them. Then, make sure the soil is | | | | life-cycle. Unless your purpose is to collect basil seeds, |
| well-drained - compost soil is the best; but if it is not | | | | you should also snip the flowers away so the plant |
| available, you can improve the soil's drainage ability by | | | | can concentrate in growing bigger, tastier leaves. |
| mixing in sand. For potted plants, you can mix in | | | | Having said that, please don't remove more than one |
| two-parts of potted soil with one-part of sand. Talking | | | | third of foliage from each plant to ensure it continues |
| about soil, you may be tempted to enrich your soil with | | | | to grow healthily. |
| lots of fertilizer... don't! Because too much feeding, | | | | Preserving Basil |
| especially nitrogen-heavy fertilizer, will reduce the flavor | | | | If you follow the steps above, I am sure you will get |
| of the Basil leaves. | | | | lots of Basil leaves - so many that you probably don't |
| For water, normal watering (once a day) is usually fine. | | | | know what to do with them! Here are the various |
| If you are not sure, it is better to under-water than | | | | ways of preserving basil leaves: |
| over-water because too much water may lead to | | | | Drying vs Freezing. As many of you may know, the |
| root rot which will almost certainly kill the plant. For | | | | most popular ways to preserve herbs are drying and |
| outdoor garden, mulching will be a good idea because | | | | freezing. From my experience, drying is NOT the |
| Basil prefers regular water supply. | | | | preferred method for Basil in particular because its |
| As a Basil grower, it is important for you to know that | | | | flavor tends to fade away during the process. Also, if |
| Basil is an annual plant, which means that it does not | | | | the weather is not dry enough, the leaves will turn into |
| survive a frost. In fact, they may start to wither when | | | | a withering brown color. |
| the temperature drops below 40F (10C). If you are | | | | However, there is a way to dry Basil quickly: the oven. |
| lucky to live in a warm sunny place such as Florida and | | | | Use the lowest heat and open the oven door slightly to |
| California, your Basil may grow so well that they can | | | | prevent burning of the leaves. |
| reseed and propagate themselves in your garden. | | | | I personally prefer the freezing method because the |
| If this is not the case, don't worry, as you can | | | | leaves are able to retain most of the flavor. How? |
| transplant your Basil in pots and care for them indoors | | | | Simply wash and pat dry the leaves, put them in a |
| during the winter and replant them outside next spring. | | | | zip-lock bag and throw it into the freezer. The frozen |
| If it sounds like a lot of work, you may consider | | | | Basil leaves can be kept for up to 6 months. |
| collecting basil seeds from your plants during the | | | | But here is my favorite way to preserve basil leaves: |
| summer, let the original batch die off, and sow the | | | | Get an air-tight container and place the leaves in neat |
| seeds in late spring. | | | | layers, sprinkling a little bit of salt in between. When the |
| So what are the secrets of the best Basil care? Let's | | | | layer reaches the top, pour in olive oil and close the lid |
| determine what makes an excellent Basil plant first. I | | | | very well. Store the container in a cool, dark place and |
| would say, well, the herbs should have lots of leaves, | | | | it can be kept up to 6 months. When used, simply take |
| and the leaves should be healthy, tender and very | | | | out the leaves and reseal. The olive oil, now flavored, is |
| fragrant. So how can we achieve that? Here is the | | | | excellent in salad dressing and pasta. |
| method: | | | | Now that you've learned the fool-proof Basil care |
| How to Grow The Best Basil Leaves | | | | technique: growing and harvesting Basil, as well as how |
| Start growing your Basil from seeds or cuttings in late | | | | to preserve it... what are you waiting for? Happy Herb |
| spring or early summer. After the first few leaves are | | | | Gardening! |