Hello! Wondering if anyone has any tips on growing basil? Whenever I plant it, it does very well for a short while, and then seems to bolt so quickly! What do you all do with all the basil once bolted? I find it gets very bitter! Do you harvest and dry it at first sight of bolting? Freeze it? Make pesto? Haha! Is there a trick to stop, or at least slow down, the bolting?? I love basil but feel that I am buying new plants or planting the seeds every couple of months. Whereas, my parsley is still growing strong after 2 years!
Just pick what you can when young then leave it alone ! It will re-seed itself for a year or two ! And try to plant early for your area ! Plants know when to grow and when to stop ! ! Do not fertilize them ,, that may be your problem ! They do better in poor soil !
I constantly pick my basil tips before it bolts, this way, I have basil all season. Plant basil near to tomatoes, this enhances both your crops. I use good and not poor soil for my basil. They like free draining soil.
I grow my basil in pots as an annual. Thai, Sweet and Mammoth. I have my plants from March to September, but in a warm greenhouse. I've found cutting an how you cut them makes a huge difference. Cutting back to a union with baby leaves, and taking larger leaves keeps it lush and as compact as I like. I have softened up to bottom watering pots for my basil, which they seem to like very much. And well drained soil. If you have parsley also, I use my extra basil and parsley to make pesto. ( I can't use pine nuts, so I just have basil, parsley, parmessan, olive oil, garlic and butter ) The pesto I scoop into rounds and freeze on a tray. That way we have fresh pesto all winter for pasta and pizza.
I have never tried parsley with pesto. We use cashew nuts instead of pine nuts. Neither butter. We freeze our pesto as well.
