Basil has a wide variety of uses and a number of different types, most of which can be grown from the comfort of your living room. Basil Parenting 101.
Sweet basil, lemon basil, lime basil, Thai basil, holy basil etc. all have the same thing in common…….The word BASIL. Joking aside, they actually do. They’re used in numerous different cuisines from around the world & they have a number of different health benefits; apparently basil acts as anti-everything… Anti-Inflammatory, Anti-stressor, Anti-oxidant, Anti-bacterial, Anti-arthritic. So why wouldn’t you want one of these plants hanging out in your living room with you?
Basics
- First – buy an established plant. Yes, you definitely could plant, grow & care for basil from seed… but I didn’t and therefore have no expertise here. So, buy an established plant (I got mine from Superstore for 4$ CAD).
- Make sure the soil it’s in is well-drained & nutrient rich. Basil cannot handle a ton of water (hence “well-drained”) so try not to let the roots get soggy, since they can rot << rotting is bad.
- Water it daily, checking the soil to make sure it’s not dry.
- Put it somewhere where it gets at least 6 hours of sunlight each day.
- Pinch or cut any flowers to keep the leaves growing. This helps to divert the plants energy to it’s leaves (which is what you’ll be harvesting) rather than the flowers.
- Keep at normal room temp, avoid drafty windows or areas where there are temp drops.
Propagation
You can grow additional basil plants by cutting a 3 to 4-inch section that has yet to flower & place the stem in water. Once healthy roots form, ~1 week later, transplant to a pot.
Harvest
Snip right above a point where two large leaves meet. Also be sure to only harvest up to 2/3 of the entire plant, so it can continue producing.
There you have the fundamentals of growing basil indoors. Easy to do and it will have you petting your new basil plant whispering “My Precious” … a.k.a channelling your inner Gollum (Lord of the Rings reference).
The Playful Palate 