Everyone knows the usual suspects when it comes to basil. Who hasn’t grown–or at least tasted–the large leaf, sweet, Italian types? Basil being such an awesome herb to grow in a pot, I’m sure most LOTB readers have tried it. But there are more interesting basils to try, and some of them are particularly good for us container gardeners.
You might expect me to suggest one of the purple varieties of basil, and they are great. But they’re becoming pretty ubiquitous, so I am assuming you don’t need me to point out, for example, that All-America Selections winner ‘Purple Ruffles’ is a great basil. What I do want to point you towards are these guys, that you might not have heard of:
1. Lime
Ocimum bacilicum ‘Americanum,’ also known as Lime Basil, has the wonderful citrusy scent as lemon basils, but I think it’s sweeter, and not at all Pine-Sol-esque, like a lot of them can be. It forms compact plants that are less than 2 feet tall, and the leaves are…you guessed it! Lime green.
2. Pistou
‘Pistou,’ is the best mini basil I’ve tried. It forms perfectly round mounds of tiny leaves. The whole plant is no more than 10 inches tall and wide. Several of them would look great lined up in a windowbox. The leaves are very mild flavored and sweet. If you prefer a more freeform mini basil, check out ‘Minimum.’
3. Lemon Sweet Dani
Even Home Depot and Lowe’s carry lemon basil these days, but in my humble opinion, not all lemon basils are created equal. ‘Lemon Sweet Dani’ is by far the lemoniest while still having a pleasant flavor. More like a drink of lemonade than a bite of lemon.
4. Serata
With mixing ornamentals with edibles and using edibles as ornamentals being all the rage these days, I would be remiss if I didn’t point you towards ‘Serata,’ which is, in my opinion, one of the prettiest basils out there. The leaves are lobed and ruffled. Would look great in a mixed container with flowers.
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oh great post! It’s interesting that most people don’t realize how much variation they can find in one species of plant – my mom was astounded when I told her the pretty purple plant under a tomato was basil
I’m growing sweet, purple petra, lime and cinnamon basils – I can’t wait for them to get big enough to plunder! I’m also going to try my lemon balm for the first time later today – hehehe, mom was very surprised when I rubbed the leaves the other day and it smelled like iced tea! I’m tempted to start growing more than just the spearmint and lemon balm varieties too…
Have anybody grown Pistou? Looks sooo cute, but what’s flavour like?
Deborah–I grew Pistou last year (I grew all of these varieties last year). It’s leaves are really small (about the size of a dime) and they’re mild and sweet.
Great post. You’ve inspired me to do a little more research on basils.
Mary–You got some of my favs there. Any plans for what you want to do with them? I can imagine some pretty and tasty options!
Sasha–Glad to be of service!
Great post! Basil is my favorite. One we discovered last year is African Blue Basil. Gorgeous plant in it’s own right and great tasting, too. I’m getting two this year, one for me and one for the bees who love the pretty purple flowers. I love the mini basil too. Perfect for alfredo pizza on the grill.
Fern – well the pic on the Lime Basil packet showed it as a dressing for what looks like sorbet. I’ve been meaning to look up sorbet recipes and see if there’s one for lime basil or maybe just blunder through making it on my own
And I’ve never used pesto before so I want to try it this year. At the very least there will be some different tasting pasta sauces and lots of iced Lemon balm tea in my kitchen this summer!
Very cool.. I’m trying out a basil garden this year with lime, Thai, cinnamon, Genovese, and purple. No idea what I’ll do with them yet – figure it’s better to wait and see if they thrive first!
i am growing lettuce leaf basil this year instead of a mammoth or sweet. blasphemy, i know. the leaves are ruffly, and it’s an heirloom pesto basil.
I found the “spicy globe” and “blue spice” and “cinnamon” to really kick up any dish served with them. This is the first year I’ve expanded into so many wonderful basil species but will never have them all. I’ve read 150 unique basil’s are available.
I’m allowing a few to go to seed so I can attempt cross pollination. Just love this earth we have been given, so many gifts lavished upon us.
Thanks for the post. So many cool kinds of basil! I have to try the purple one, I’ve never grown it before.
My last post was in April and this is an update to the basil crop. Absolutely love the flowers from all the species I’ve grown as a snack and / or garnish. Tons of seeds, already growing new plants from this years harvest. Have ample seeds and dried herbs to last through until next Spring.
Was able to learn which are truly heat tolerant, their growing habits, flavors and anxious to see the results of the hybrid project.
Each attract different insects to pollinate and the butterfly’s love them all it seems.
I am growing Siam Queen, thai basil…it is so delisicious, finely chopped and sprinkled over fruit (I had it with pear) gelato.
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