Basil Plant

[deelady]

this is my first time growing my own basil and I have been wondering if it has reached its life expectancy....its budding left and right and even though I keep taking them off it just seems to be done growing full leaves plus the thicker stalks are turning brown even though all the leaves are still green....Suzi you said it was time you got another one does that mean you have to start over each time? If so what do you do with the older plant?
Sorry for all the questions.......

 

[suziquzie]

lol no i just meant i cant get enough!!!!
you're doing the right thing popping the flowers off, but dont even let it go that far. as soon as you see the little bugger starting, get it offa there!
I have always just picked off individual leaves when I use it, but I think it was KE and Sattie that said to just cut off a stem about 2 inches from the bottom.... i haven't been brave enough to try it yet to see if it will grow back.

 

[sattie]

Deelady.... I grew mine in pots this year and they have gone nuts. I have been nipping the buds off mine to keep it from flowering/seeding. The plant gets bitter when that happens.

I'm not sure what the best storage is for basil once it is cut from the plant, I usually end up making pesto or somthing with mine right away. But I just whacked the entire plant off 2 inches from the soil. Leaving a bit of stem and a few leaves. The plant comes back in no time flat. In about 2 to 3 weeks.

Now, if someone can give you some advice on how to store the stuff once you harvest it, you will be in business!

 

[sattie]

lol no i just meant i cant get enough!!!!
you're doing the right thing popping the flowers off, but dont even let it go that far. as soon as you see the little bugger starting, get it offa there!
I have always just picked off individual leaves when I use it, but I think it was KE and Sattie that said to just cut off a stem about 2 inches from the bottom.... i haven't been brave enough to try it yet to see if it will grow back.

It will grow back... I was a bit leery about doing it too, but it came back full force. I got 3 basil plants and I'm up to my ears in basil and pesto sauce! If you whack the plant, it will at least give you a breather from having to preen it so often!!!

 

[suziquzie]

store it just like pesto and freeze it......
put it in the food processor and mulch with a little olive oil (not as much as for pesto) and make sort of a paste.....
I freeze it in ice cube trays then put them in a ziplock.... ready for soups and stuff all winter.

 

[suziquzie]

LOL we're all about the basil today Sattie!!!
oh and deelady i did go out and take some new garden pics and put them in my profile pics. I'll get some close ups of the basil if you want...

 

[sattie]

Girl... we need to rename ourselves to the Basil Queens!!!! Thanks for the tip on 'mulching' it with a bit of olive oil. I think I will give that a try so I can try it with other things than 15 million kinds of pesto sauce.

 

[suziquzie]

ok I'm gonna go out and lop one off, my dad gave me a bunch more this weekend that he started but doesn't need. yay! so I guess I can spare one little bugger.

cross your fingers!

 

[deelady]

Thanks you guys and I would love to see a close up pic....I will also take a pic of mine to show you the sad state mine is in....it was doing so good until about a week ago...it more than doubled in size since I planted it, but now

 

[suziquzie]

k.... I'll bring the camera out.... hopefully I will remember to bring it back in!!!

 

[DramaQueen]

I grow basil almost all year long, except in the summer in Vegas. I cut the stem, usually just above the part of the stem with 2 leaves side by side. If you do this, the plant will sprout new stems and leaves from either side of the two leaves under the cut. Hope I make myself clear, I don't know how else to explain it. You will get a very bushy plant this way. It is important not to let the plant go to flowers, cut the buds as soon as you see them. Throw the buds into a salad for added flavor.

I make a simple pesto meaning just basil leaves and olive oil in a food processor then freeze in small containers or an ice cube tray.
I add one or two frozen cubes into my spaghetti sauce right at the end. Marvelous flavor!!!
You can add a cube or two to homemade tomato, vegetable or Italian soup for a sensational kick.

 

[sattie]

If it would stop raining long enough... I would!!! HA HA HA... never thought I would say that!!!

 

[BreezyCooking]

Also, if you have a south-facing sunny window & don't have plant-torturing pets, Basil is very easy to grow in pots from seed during non-outdoor-gardening times of the year.

 

[suziquzie]

Alright. It's hot out there and dang it I couldn't get the focus right... but you'll get the idea I hope! There's one with all my different types.... genovese, thai, (too licoricey i dont like it) lemon and cinnamon....
my soil is drier underneath than I thought so everything looks parched.. sorry.....
but i found 2 flower pods, one at the stage I try to catch them, and the other I musta missed. oops.

 

[deelady]

I took some of my thyme and rosemary I just planted also....

 

[deelady]

see how my basil stems are turning brown....??

 

[deelady]

very nice Suzi, thanks for posting.....someday I'll be able to do that, I would love to have purple basil but didnt see any sold.

 

[suziquzie]

I started them all from seed.... its really not hard. Then you can grow anything you want!!!

 

[deelady]

oh you can eat the buds?? And I have been tossing them! What happens if you do get a little flower sprouted? Is the whole plant a goner? As you can see I don't think I have enough good leaves on mine to harvest or else I would make a pesto to freeze! They all seem too small or too lite in color...didn't seem healthy enough to eat. It was delish at the beginning of summer!

 

[deelady]

so is my plant a goner??