Mrs. Burns' Lemon Basil Seeds

This heat-loving plant sets 2 1/2-inch leaves of dark green on plants 18 to 24 inches tall and 12 to 24 inches wide. A great choice for containers as well as the herb or vegetable garden, it is aromatic and very pest and disease resistant. Strongly recommended for anyone who values strong fragrance and flavor.

Sow seeds outdoors 1 to 2 weeks after last spring frost, or begin indoors 6 to 8 weeks before transplant date. It germinates in 5 to 15 days. Thin when seedlings are 2 inches tall. Pinch the central stem of the plant back several times during growth to encourage the production of side shoots. Lean soils in a sunny location will produce more flavorful oils, but it will tolerate partial sun. Be sure to grow some on a sunny indoor windowsill for fresh herbs just steps away from your cooking. It's also a bit more heat tolerant than Sweet Basil, a plus for gardens in the South. It produces small terminal racemes of pink flowers, but you'll want to keep them pinched back to promote dense, bushy growth and focus the plant's energy on producing aromatic oil instead of flowers. Pkt is 100 seeds.

Basil is a sun-loving annual herb that is among the most popular in the world for flavoring food. Native to Asia, it was carried from India to Egypt to Greece in the ancient world, and remains a mainstay of cuisine in many cultures. In the garden, it is often grown alongside tomatoes, and is considered a guard plant protecting veggies and flowering plants from some predators.

Choosing a Variety

Selecting which basil to grow is the most difficult part of gardening with this scrumptious herb! Most have green leaves and either pink or purple blooms, though some sport purple-toned foliage. We recommend that for growing indoors, you select dwarf varieties. There are many delectable choices:

Sweet Basil - Used in French, Italian, Greek, and other Mediterranean cuisines, these varieties are mildly flavored yet strongly aromatic, an irresistible combination! Nufar Hybrid is a Genovese type that resists fusarium wilt, making it one of the easiest to grow. Large Leaf Italian is among the most popular for fresh or dried use. And Pistou is a very compact French variety with a sweet, mild bite.

Spicy Basil - A mainstay of Oriental cuisine, these varieties pack a stronger, spicier bite than their sweet cousins. AAS winner Thai Siam Queen delivers zingy flavor on extra-large plants that produce very heavily, while unusual Cinnamon uniquely combines the sweet with the spicy!

Citrus Basil - Combining lemon or lime flavors with traditional basil flavor makes a superb addition to drinks and desserts! One of our favorites is Mrs. Burns' Lemon, an heirloom variety from New Mexico with lip-puckering intensity. Lime is indispensable for Thai cuisine, and its dwarf habit makes it a must-have in the indoor kitchen garden.

Can't decide where to begin? We recommend that you save money with our sampler platter -- the Culinary Collection! You'll get a packet each of 4 of our very best: one Genovese, one French, one lemon, and one purple-leaf!

When to Start

To grow basil indoors, sow the seeds at any time of year. To grow in the garden, begin seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before anticipated transplant date. Transplant the seedlings or sow seeds directly into the soil only when daytime temperatures are in the 70's and nighttime temps remain above 50°F.

How to Start

Drop one seed into each bio sponge of your Bio Dome, or sow on top of a seed flat and lightly cover with vermiculite. Germination occurs in 5 to 15 days at any temperature between 65 and 85°F. Transplant the seedlings anytime after they have 2 sets of true leaves.

Special Considerations

• Harvest basil as you need it, taking leaves from the top of the plant first. Try not to harvest more often than once a week.
  
• To dry the leaves for seasoning, cut the entire plant at soil level, turn it upsidedown, and hang it in a warm, dry room for about a week. Then strip the leaves from the stems and store them in an airtight container for up to a year. Do not crumble them until ready to use.
  
• When adding basil to cooked dishes, wait until just before serving for the strongest flavor and best texture.

Growing Tips

• Basil loves hot weather and needs consistently moist, rich soil for best growth. Give it 6 to 8 hours of sunlight a day outdoors, and a good dose of fluorescents or plant lights every day indoors.
  
• As flower buds arise, pinch them off. Flowering will stop the foliage growth and dilute the flavor of the leaves.

Pests and Problems to Watch For

Outdoors, slugs and beetles can nibble the leaves. Using a sharp mulch will discourage their approach.

Indoors, aphids can become a problem. Check the undersides of new leaves very carefully for signs of these tiny white creatures, and spray leaves on both sides to keep them clean.

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Basil Germination Information

• Best sown indoors, 6-8 weeks before last frost, at a temperature of 68-70°
• Sow at a depth of 4 times the size of the seeds and expect germination in 7-10 days
• Seeds can also be sown outdoors after all danger of frost is past and when the ground is warm
• When sowing seed outdoors, we recommend a maximum planting depth of 4X the width of the seed

This culinary herb is grown in ground in the garden, but also transitions well to container culture. The purple-leaved types are highly ornamental. Plants grow 15-24 inches tall and wide and produce ornamentally unimportant, white or purplish flowers in the summer. It is grown for the broad, dark green or dark purple, aromatic foliage. Depending on the variety, the foliage will be redolent of clove, anise, cinnamon, lemon, rose, or orange. Harvest the leaves at any time for fresh use. To dry them for storage, harvest the leaves as the flowers begin to open

Superior Germination Through Superior Science

First of all, we have humidity- and temperature-controlled storage, and we never treat any of our seeds with chemicals or pesticides. Nor do we ever sell GMO's (genetically modified seeds), so you always know the products you're buying from us are natural as well as safe for you and the environment.

Superior Standards - University Inspected

Hand Packed By Experienced Technicians

When packing our seeds, the majority are actually done by hand (with extreme care!), and we often over-pack them, so you're receiving more than the stated quantity.

The Park Seed Gold Standard

Heirloom Seeds are open-pollinated -- they are not hybrids. You can gather and save heirloom seed from year to year and they will grow true to type every year, so they can be passed down through generations. To be considered an heirloom, a variety would have to be at least from the 1940's and 3 generations old (many varieties are much older -- some 100 years or more!).

Hybrid seed are the product of cross-pollination between 2 different parent plants, resulting in a new plant/seed that is different from the parents. Unlike Heirloom seed, hybrid seed need to be re-purchased new every year (and not saved). They usually will not grow true to type if you save them, but will revert to one of the parents they were crossed with and most likely look/taste different in some way.