Aug 06 2007
Growing Basil
Each spring I meander down to my local open air market and buy myself a basil plant. I replant it, water it, and enjoy the many delicious meals that it livens-up. Yet, every summer it would flower and then slowly stop producing leaves until the stem hardens and the plant eventually dies and it’s back to dried basil until next spring.
While my mother-in-law was here, she shared a great tip with me about plants in general: when they go to seed, they have completed their genetic duty and can die happily.
What does this mean?
Well, “to go to seed” a plant need to flower and produce seeds (at least most plants do). So, to keep it from thinking it’s has no need to live anymore, just snip off the flowers and it will keep producing more delicious foliage until winter’s frost comes! And, the snipped flowering basil tips makes a really great and quite fragrant centerpiece!
