Which Basils do you grow and how and why?

i grow holy (sacred?) basil, its amazingly more potent then regular basil, its extremely fragrant, your fingers smell for an hour once you touch it…..too powerful for cooking though… regular basil for pesto and salads etc….red basil also for thai spring rolls…mium mium….
my problem is not enough sun in my yard for herbs and veggies…....and i am not cutting down those trees….their shade has saved my life during our last heat wave….:)....besides cutting down on noise from the elevated throughway nearby…:)...and beeing homes for dozens of domestic birds…..

-- south shore montreal, zone 5a, whish it was 9

My basil grows under my tomato plants so this variety seems to need less sun.
You might want to try a container in your yard Mario to see if maybe you have enough light?

What do you use your Tulsi for?

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

the tulsi is purely for the aroma, i love to sit and watch my garden while rubbing a branch in my fingers.
I am very much a smell freak…love anything that smells fresh but not too perfumy. no to aqua velva!!!!!!
yes to citronella….lol…lol…lol….
i also have basil growing under my 3 tomato plants but i dont get a huge crop like my italian friend with his sun packed yard!!!!!!

-- south shore montreal, zone 5a, whish it was 9

One more question; where did you find the Tulsi? I think I shall have to grow some as well.
I understand it is also used in various teas.
I have it in my head that I would like one garden of all blue colored flowers and one bed with all fragrances.
I am thinking of dianthus, sweet pea, nicotiana etc and maybeTulsi.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

you would be impressed with its very strong fragrance, let see if i can salvage some seeds, maybe you could try them…

we have a huge indian community here too and its readily available in their grocery stores as plants , never seen seeds in packages though….i dont lket mine seed yet to encourage more leaves…..

sweet peas are wonderful, i let mine run through my plants as opposed to have them climbing a pole….they climb up other plants….

curry too, and curry has a lovely gray fern like leafage with yellow dill like flower heads….
thym, tarragon, rosemary, most sages smell wonderful, mints etc…....

i keep a lot of herbs under grow lights in the house when it gets colder…

-- south shore montreal, zone 5a, whish it was 9

There is something very “earthy and natural” about the scents and aromas that plants exude to attract and repel.
Mario, you hit on one of the best reasons to keep herbs in your home all year round if possible.
The aroma seems to stimulate the pleasure centers and is the main reason that they are chosen for fragrances and perfumes.
I think most perfumes are over done but women like them that way.

I prefer mild cigars and full bodied brandy! <g>

p.s. I will try calling some of our east indian stores here and trap a plant of two.
thanks for the tip.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

I like growing the purple leaved basil because I love dark purple leaved plants to offset the green, but also because I make basil vinegar in it that I use a lot in stews.

-- Zone 4a or 4b... depending on where you are standing!

Thanks MT. some one told me is was a good add in korean spring roll.
Do you know if that’st rue? I had not hoought of making a vinegret but you know…
What’s your secret to growing it?
I have had my second failure.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

I once grew basil in my Aerogarden. .. they did good.

Love making Tomato Basil Soup.

-- Orchids77

Orchids&&
I use basil in all soups and salads, I sprinkle it over tomatoes and fry or bake them . It’s amust in tomato sausec and I must have you recipe for tomatoe soup as mine sucks.
I’m going to the India mart on the wekend to try to find Tulsi.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

Yes indeed, we need the recipe for tomato and basil soup. PLEASE?

-- jroot

Bob, wish I could say I have a secret… it grows fantastically from seed if I start it indoors late march. Last two years I could not start things indoors so I bought them at a local center. I just make sure they get good earth/fertilized when I set them in… and well watered…. and trim the tops so the leaves grow bigger periodically.

Could be my zone, which is warmer than yours. But I find the purple basil is more hardy than many of the other basils (like greek or even broad leaved).

Maybe my secret is that I covet that particular basil so much that I check on it more often than my other herbs ;)

Basil in spring rolls… Yum!!!! I love to cook thai, and the purple basil is amazing in recipes.

-- Zone 4a or 4b... depending on where you are standing!

I’m going to try it a gain , this time with some notes. My green basil (Ocimum basilicum) seems to gorw just fine so I must have had a bad run on starrter or seed twice in a row.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

I grew lemon basil this year in hanging baskets along with oregano, garlic chive, and tumbling tom cherry tomatoes.

The lemon basil was very aromatic and looked amazing. It grew to be about 12” tall. It actually thrived so well I had more than I expected. I would recommend it to anyone. I used it in italian pasta as well as salsa and proved to be versatile.

Hope this helps!

-- Cyndibelle- Burlington, WI

Cyndibelle I’ll geve that a try too. Seems a good way to have themall handy at onece too.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth