Basil : Ocimum basilica "king of herbs"
Are you like me. . . . . . . . . never can have enough of the delicious fragrant herb
basil growing nearby?
Whether a small pot on the kitchen window sill at easy reach, larger pots outside
the door (my favorite way), or even a raised bed tucked into a sunny garden spot,
basil reigns as the "king of herbs" in summer.
After all, what is a warm sun-ripened tomato without fresh basil - in a quick basic
sandwich, snipped over the mozzarella and best EVOO in a Caprese salad, and
of course gathered by the bunch to make a beautiful pesto sauce for pasta,
bruschetta, or spread on a crisp grilled cheese or roasted veggie panini?
I did start off my annual basil with this store bought pot in May - snipped and rooted
pieces in a Mason jar on the kitchen window sill - just because I couldn't wait for all
those seeds to germinate! The other plants are from seed which I sow wherever
there's a pot with an empty space. The basil doesn't mind sharing with a few annual
flowers and they do look pretty together.
Do you have basil growing ready for summertime recipes?
What other annual herbs do you grow?
I'm growing parsley, cilantro, chives, mint, dill. . . . . . . and sage is out there somewhere
but I haven't seen it yet! I also have two huge old rosemary bushes, they are hardy
and stay green year round and are often clipped for recipes, or just to make a
vase of fragrant greenery in the winter kitchen.
I can't imagine life, or cooking, without wonderful easy to grow herbs, can you?
Pesto coming next!
Pesto coming next!
I used to love growing basil and always having it fresh .. but these days I am too lazy ... for anything lol But yours looks beautiful ..
ReplyDeleteLove basil and I agree I can never have enough. I also am growing thyme, chives, parsley and rosemary. When I have my raised beds I also grow dill, oregano and cilantro. Mint I grow in a separate container, because it is so invasive.
ReplyDeleteThere is always Basil in my kitchen and/or garden. I wonder if you have tried growing any of the different varieties, such as Thai or purple Basil?
ReplyDeleteI have lots of different herbs growing in my herb garden. It would be a toss up between mint and parsley as my most frequently used herb. I also grow basil, thyme, oregano, chives and sage . Rosemary hangs over the wall beside the driveway and we probably use less than 1 % of it ( you only need a little ) Most herbs survive the Winter here except mint which needs a good hair cut to get rid of any rust. Its all right outside the kitchen window so not far to go for them all either.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of basil growing with flowers in a pot. It looks beautiful with the colourful blooms.
ReplyDeleteYour basil is beautiful. I just noticed our basil in the garden today. It is starting to grow, but has a ways to go before it can be plucked. I do believe we have lemon verbena, sage, oregano, chives, and parsley. Maybe a couple other things, but not sure. The "live-in gardener" recently redid the herb garden, so not sure what is there. It certainly looks better though.
ReplyDeleteNone on my window sill right now, as I am going to Yorkshire at the end of this week and nobody would water it while I'm away. But I already know that I'll get some basil on my salad for lunch at my Mum's today, freshly picked from the big terra cotta pot on her sunny balcony.
ReplyDeleteYours looks great, I can almost smell it!
I have two pots of basil growing right now and have been snipping it a lot lately, mostly for salads. I just made a big bowl of pasta veggie salad yesterday and a few days ago, it was a quinoa veggie salad. Last week I made a caprese salad and ended up eating the whole thing in 2 days, lol! I have yet to make pesto this summer, but eventually I will. I also have dill, parsley, lemon balm, sage, rosemary, oregano and thyme growing.
ReplyDeleteI love growing basil, and did have some in a pot in Tucson. But now I have a couple of plants in the ground. It's such a wonderful, fresh herb. I also have a rosemary...always have rosemary! And I have some lovely thyme, which is my favorite. Plan to get some lavender, as well. Have a lovely week!
ReplyDeleteI do. And parsley, thyme, and rosemary... Basil makes such a pretty plant....
ReplyDeleteYour basil pots look so pretty. I grow a lot of it, too, and put it among the tomatoes as they seem to enjoy each other's company. Oregano, sage, thyme, summer savory, chives, rosemary, and parsley are also in the garden. Most of them are perennial, so I just clip and they keep growing. Basil, tomatoes and mozzarella are a winning taste combination in my book.
ReplyDelete