Sweet Basil is the green sweet basil that everyone all over the world uses in a wide variety of dishes. It originates from Africa and was first domesticated in India. Sweet Basil has also been found in Egyptian tombs and in artifacts from Greece.

 

Sun – Sweet  Basil needs 6-8 hours of full sun.

 

Soil – Moist well draining soil is prefect for this tropical plant.  

 

Spacing – Basil needs a lot of space about 10-12 inches between plants.

 

Water – It needs 1 inch of water every week and likes to dry out little between watering.

 

Food – If you are growing sweet basil outside it will only need fertilizer once when you first plant it. If you’re growing it in doors you will need to water it about once a month with an organic water based fertilizer.

 

Annual or Perennial – Sweet basil is an annual plant in cold zones and a biennial in its native tropical zones.

 

Climate/Hardiness – Sweet Basil is a not cold hardy but it  can survive temperatures as low as 32°F/0°C. Although basil can survive that temperature it can’t survive it for to long. If the daytime and nighttime temperature stays that low the basil plant will die. If it isn’t always that cold it will have adverse effects on the plants growth.

 

Harvest – You can start to harvest basil leaves 60-70 days after it has been planted and if you only trim them they will grow new leaves very fast.

 

Transplant – Sweet basil does not like to be transplanted and also has very delicate leaves that bruise easily. For this reason it is best to plant it somewhere where you will not have to move it or in a pot that you can bring indoors in the winter.