Last edited on 16 Oct 2026. View history

Sweet Basil

Ocimum basilicum WD

A variety of basil

3
plantings
1
harvest
2
seed packets
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Sweet basil facts

Lifespan

Annual living and reproducing in a single year or less

First harvest expected

7 weeks after planting

Row Spacing

30cm median of members' seed packets

Germination

10–14 days median of members' seed packets

When to sow

Southern hemisphere Sep–Feb
Northern hemisphere Mar–Aug
median of members' seed packets

Grown for

leaf harvested 1 time

Growing sweet basils

  1. Sow seeds indoors 6 weeks before planting out
  2. Harden off the seedlings 1 week before planting out
  3. Water regularly at planting out every week
  4. Pinch out the growing tips 3 weeks after planting out every 2 weeks
  5. Pick leaves regularly at first harvest every week
  6. Pinch off flower buds 8 weeks after planting out every 2 weeks
  7. Pull out finished plants 12 weeks after first harvest

How members grow sweet basils

Sunniness

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Planted from

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Harvested for

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Plant sweet basils with

grape tomato

Photos

Sweet basil crops

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Ecological requirements

Data from the FAO EcoCrop database for Ocimum basilicum L.

Family / Taxonomy Magnoliopsida
Asteridae
Lamiales
Labiatae
Optimal temperature 18 - 27 °C
Absolute temperature 7 - 36 °C
Optimal rainfall 1000 - 1600 mm/year
Absolute rainfall 600 - 4300 mm/year
Optimal soil pH 6.0 - 7.0
Absolute soil pH 4.3 - 8.2
Crop cycle 80 - 270 days
Life form herb
Life span annual
Habit erect
Optimal soil depth shallow (20-50 cm)
Optimal soil texture medium
Optimal soil fertility high
Optimal soil drainage well (dry spells)
Optimal soil salinity low (<4 dS/m)
Photoperiod short day (<12 hours), neutral day (12-14 hours), long day (>14 hours)
Optimal light very bright

Licensed under CC-BY-4.0 .

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) ECOCROP, the crop ecological requirements database. Version 1. https://data.apps.fao.org/catalog/dataset/ecocrop. Accessed through the CGIAR Climate Action Data Hub, https://cgiar-climate-data-hub.github.io/catalog/ecocrop_1/.

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