Sweet Basil

Ocimum basilicum

Tender warm-season culinary herb. Grown in a black pot here. Pinch often to keep it bushy and delay flowering.

Sun
full sun
Water
moderate
Mature size
12–24 in × 12–18 in
Bloom
White flower spikes — pinch them off to keep leaves tender.
Hardiness
USDA Zones tender annual (frost–sensitive)

Care guide

Quick ID

Tender annual culinary herb in a black pot. Frost-sensitive — plant out only once nights are warm.

Growing

Pinch the tips often (above a leaf pair) to force a bushy plant and delay bolting. Remove flower spikes as they form — flowering turns the leaves bitter and slows growth.

Watering

Consistent moisture (pots dry quickly); morning watering, avoid wetting foliage late in the day.

Harvest

Harvest leaves regularly from the top down; a steady pinch-harvest *is* the maintenance.

In my garden

potager garden‘Sweet’ · 1 plant
SunFull sun
Soilsandy loam, fast percolation
Water sourceSecondary
Hardiness hereZone 7
1
Plants
2026-05-16
Planted · ~0 yrs
What I've done here
  • 2026-05-16Planted (pot)