Worth knowing:
The Red Basil is a large-leaved basil species that develops crimson red, toothed leaves and pink-coloured flowers. The annual plant grows rather fast between 20 to 50 cm tall and is a markedly aromatic herb.
Natural Location:
The Red Basil has its natural habitat in the tropical Africa and in Asia. Today it can be found all over the Mediterranean region.
Cultivation:
Place:
The Red Basil likes to be kept in a sunny or at least half-shaded place. Since the plant is rather sensitive to frost, it should only be moved outdoors from mid May.
Care:
Don’t keep the Red Basil too moist, and check regularly for slugs during summer, when the pot is kept outdoors. Cut the shoot tips regularly to get a nice bushy and branched plant. Drying the leaves is by the way not a good idea since the aroma will fade off quickly, and with storing them in the freezer you will only get sludgy leaves after defrosting.
During the winter:
Basil is usually cultivated as an annual plant. However, you may try to hibernate the plant in a bright and draught-free place with a temperature between 15° and 20° Celsius.
Picture credits:
- © © Dinkum - CC0 - http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Forest & Kim Starr - CC-BY-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
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