Fresh basil is one of the best things about summer! Want to grow yours at home? It’s all about growing basil here.
Fresh basil is one of the best ingredients in the summer kitchen. Its peppery and herbaceous taste makes every dish irresistible. Pizza Margherita with fresh garden basil? Perfection. caprese salad? Heavenly. Even adding a few basil leaves to a simple pot of spaghetti makes it great.
It’s much easier and cheaper to grow basil at home than buying it from the store. Luckily, growing basil at home is very easy: you don’t even need a garden! It works perfectly in a pot on a sunny ledge. Alex and I grow fresh basil every year and cannot recommend it highly enough! Here’s how to grow basil at home.
Related: The best basil recipes
How to grow basil
If you’ve never grown basil before, growing it at home can seem overwhelming! However, it’s pretty easy after you know some tips on how to do it. How to grow basil at home:
Preparation time:
5 minutes
Active time:
5 minutes
Total time:
10 mins
Fresh basil is one of the best things about summer! Want to grow yours at home? It’s all about growing basil here.
materials
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basil begins
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pot (or garden bed)
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potting soil
instructions
- Buy a basil appetizer at a farmer’s market or garden store. The most reliable way to grow basil is to grow it from the start (small basil plant). If you have experience growing from seed, you can also grow from seed: check out this Farmer’s Almanac guide to learn more.
- Plant basil in full sun in a pot with drainage, a raised bed, or soil. Use potting soil or garden mix to plant basil in a pot, making sure the pot has holes in the bottom for drainage. If you have a garden, basil does well in raised beds due to the drainage. Basil thrives best in a location that receives 6 to 8 hours of full sun per day. Avoid planting near driveways or busy roads where exhaust fumes could settle on the plant.
- Prune the basil plant regularly. Removing the basil leaves will help the plant branch out, making it a tall, bushy plant. When a branch has six to eight leaves, pinch off the stem and return to the first set of leaves. When you see flowers starting to grow on the basil, cut them off immediately. Be sure to pick and use the leaves regularly: it helps the plant grow!
- Water the basil regularly. Keep the soil around the basil moist. We water our basil every few days.
When to plant basil?
The best time to plant basil is spring: In Indiana, it is planted in early May. You want the weather to be warm enough so that there are no surprise freezes. Basil loves heat! You can plant in a pot until June or July.
Basil lasts until the first frosts. Here in Indiana we usually have basil from September to early October: but of course that all depends on your location! At the end of the season we always harvest all of the basil and then make a large batch of pesto.
Is basil a perennial?
Is basil a perennial? Does it come back every year without having to replant it? No. Basil is generally considered a yearly Plant, which means you have to replant them every year. There are some climates where it can survive as a perennial, but you usually need to treat it as an annual and replant every year.
Types of basil
A quick note on basil varieties. The type of basil we grow and commonly used in Mediterranean-style recipes is called basil. This is the type of basil used in pesto, caprese salad, and marinades. Sweet basil is the type of basil shown in the photos here. Sweet basil is the type of basil that we recommend growing.
However, there are many other basil varieties worth growing! Thai basil has darker, pointed leaves and an aniseed flavor. It is used in many Asian dishes, such as our vegetarian spring rolls. Lemon Basil also has a tangy citrus flavor and is a fun twist on basil.
How much sun does basil need?
Basil loves the sun! Plant basil in a spot that gets about 6 to 8 hours of full sun per day. Can you grow basil indoors? It is possible. However, Alex and I have never had success growing basil indoors. Because basil loves heat and sun, it’s easiest to grow it outdoors in a pot in full sun.
How to prune a basil plant
Trimming a basil plant is the hardest part of growing basil. Removing the leaves looks like it will harm the plant, right? Bad. Removing the leaves from a basil plant is actually very good for the plant! This encourages her to grow and become a bushier plant, making her much more productive. How to cut a basil plant:
- Removing the basil leaves will help the plant branch out, making it a tall, bushy plant.
- Once a sprig of basil has six to eight leaves, cut off the stem and leaves except for the first few leaves. Continue this throughout the growing season.
- When you see flowers starting to grow on the basil, cut them off immediately.
- Be sure to prune (and use) the leaves regularly: it helps the plant grow!
How do you keep basil fresh?
Let’s say you’ve grown your basil and need to harvest stems with leaves to keep the plant healthy. If you can’t use everything right away in your kitchen, how do you store fresh basil? Here’s a great way to keep basil fresh indoors:
- Find a mason jar large enough that the basil stalks don’t need to be crushed or bagged.
- Pour a few inches of water into the jar, then place the basil sprig, cut side down, in the water.
- Unscrew the lid of the jar.
- Keep refrigerated. This keeps the basil fresh for up to 3-5 days.
You may find the basil stems wilt after about an hour, even if you place them in a cup of water on your countertop. So we were thrilled to find this method! Can you remove the basil leaves from the stems? Unfortunately, not. Basil leaves that have been stripped from the stems do not store well. We advise you to use them on the day of harvest: make a batch of pesto if necessary! Or you can also dry basil: go to How to dry basil.
What to cook with basil
There are so many good things you can cook with fresh basil! Its peppery flavor takes any dish to the next level. Plus, the feeling of satisfaction from cooking with homegrown basil is unbeatable! Here are some of our favorite fresh basil recipes:
Questions about growing basil?
What else do you need to know about growing basil at home? Let us know in the comments below! For a technical resource on gardening, see the Farmer’s Almanac Guide on Basil.
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