hiya scott123,
i start a few types of basil from seed on top of my oil burner in the basement to help them sprout. i usually start genovese, sweet, purple ruffle, thai, about the last week in april. on warm days, i put the seedlings outside but if it's still cold out at night, i take them in, and put them back out during the day. it takes at least 3 or 4 weeks to get to begin picking, but as soon as the summer heat hits, you should pick a lot, especially the tops so they don't bolt to seed. they'll keep splitting off new branches so they can produce seed pods at the top. i planted mine late this year, some time around the end of july, and i'm still taking in a few leaves here and there.
and deer love basil. the only way you're gonna keep them out is to fence in your garden, including over the top to form a dome like thing, and burying the fence in the ground about 2 feet down, using "rabbit" fence or chicken wire. there's a lot of sprays and things that work for a short time, but you have to keep applying them, especially after a heavy rain.