Description

One of our most popular seeds (Sweet Basil) is characterized as a Mediterranean or European-type basil, the taste is sweet, floral and delicate, with slightly minty notes, an anise-like aroma and clove-like undertones. Use leaves fresh or dried. 

The plant is known for its glossy leaves, spikes of white flowers. The basil plant is a part of the mint family and is scientifically known as Ocimum basilicum.

As well as adding delicious flavours to your food, Sweet Basil can also be greatly beneficial to your plants and soil, even more reason to add it to your garden!

 

Benefits

Companion Planting

• Planting basil as a companion plant with other produce helps you get bug-free vegetables and fruits as it repels insects such as aphids, beetles, tomato hornworms, mosquitoes and white flies.
• The plants which can benefit from simply being alongside basil are tomatoes, beans, beets, cabbage, asparagus, chili and bell peppers, eggplants, potatoes, asparagus, oregano and even marigolds.

Easy To Grow From Seed

• A great benefit to growing basil is that the plant is quite hardy and is easy to grow from seed.
• Basil likes warm soil and can't tolerate frost, so it is best planted in early spring.

Basil Can Be Grown In A Pot

• Herbs are known to not grow well in pots, however basil actually thrives quite well when planted alone.
• Basil will be happy grown on a sunny windowsill and moved outside in warmer weather.

Basil Attracts Beneficial Insects

• Basil flowers are beneficial for your garden as they attract beneficial insects and pollinators like bees, that especially love basil flowers and that you definitely want to have as a part of your garden.

Basil Is A Great Insect Repellent

• Due to its pungent smell, basil is great for repelling bugs such as tomato hornworms, flies, aphids, mosquito's and asparagus beetles.

 

How To Use

Basil is a hardy plant that flourishes under the following conditions:

• Season: Spring - basil seeds sprout best when the soil is warm.
• Germinate 7-10 days
• Depth: 10 mm
• Spacing: 30 x 30 cm
• Harvest: 21 - 28 days
• Height: 30 - 60 cm
• Flowering Season: Summer
• Exposure: Fairly sunny, 3-4 hours of sun

Ideal Growing Environment: 

• Like most plants, basil needs good drainage – stagnant water around basil will kill it.
• Basil is sensitive to the cold and prefers warm conditions.
• Basil will grow faster if it is regularly harvested.
• Mulch basil plants to retain moisture.
• Once basil plants bloom into flowers the leaves begin to lose their flavour. Cut off the flowers as they appear and the leaves will get their flavour back within a few days.

 

For placement of large orders contact us at: office@greenhouston.co.za