{"id":21892,"date":"2025-06-30T19:36:02","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T23:36:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meadowsfarms.com\/great-big-greenhouse-gardening-blog\/?p=21892"},"modified":"2025-06-30T19:36:02","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T23:36:02","slug":"the-queen-of-herbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.meadowsfarms.com\/great-big-greenhouse-gardening-blog\/the-queen-of-herbs\/","title":{"rendered":"The Queen of Herbs"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve done blogs on chives and dill\u2014two of my favorite herbs. Well, here is a blog on the “Queen” of herbs\u2014basil. Basil, believe it or not, is a member of the mint family. The name comes from the Greek word basilkon<\/em> meaning Royal. It is native to the tropics from Central Africa to Southeast Asia. The botanical name is Ocimum basilicum.<\/p>\n

What is Basil?<\/h3>\n

Basil is a traditional herb used to give its rich flavor to lots of dishes.\u00a0 It comes in many different varieties–sweet basil, lemon basil, cinnamon basil, Thai basil, Dark Opal basil.\u00a0 The one mostly commonly used is sweet basil but the others are also fun.<\/p>\n

To Grow Your Own<\/h3>\n

Do not plant basil out until all danger of frost is past.\u00a0 Basil is an annual–meaning it grows for one season, goes to seed, and dies.\u00a0 It will not make it over the winter.\u00a0 It thrives in 6 to 8 hours of direct sun. It needs well-draining soil and adequate moisture to do well.\u00a0 If you grow it in a pot on your deck, water it when the soil is dry about 1\/3 of the way down.\u00a0 Never let it go so dry it wilts.\u00a0 Fertilize with a fertilizer with even numbers (10-10-10 or 20-20-20).\u00a0 If bloom spikes appear, pinch them off.\u00a0 You can also pinch the plant back a bit on occasion to keep it full.<\/p>\n

How to Save Basil<\/h3>\n

One of the best and easiest ways to save basil over the winter, is to get an ice cube tray and layer 3 to 4 basil leaves in each compartment.\u00a0 Top each with a couple of tablespoons of water and freeze,\u00a0 When frozen, dump the basil cubes into a zippered freezer bag.\u00a0 When you need basil for a recipe, take a cube or two out and defrost\u00a0 by running water over them–just don’t use hot water, use cool.<\/p>\n

And the single most important thing to remember–enjoy!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’ve done blogs on chives and dill\u2014two of my favorite herbs. Well, here is a blog on the “Queen” of herbs\u2014basil. Basil, believe it or not, is a member of the mint family. The name comes from the Greek word basilkon meaning Royal. It is native to the tropics from Central Africa to Southeast Asia. … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":17410,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bonnies-garden","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGrowing Basil in Virginia: Tips for Success in Your Garden<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how to successfully grow basil in Virginia with essential tips on planting, caring, and storing this flavorful herb.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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