Tips on growing basil

Our basil seedlings are growing like weeds!  We are going to have more basil plants than I have ever grown at one time :)  One can never have enough basil and I love giving them to friends and family to enjoy . . . ready to pinch and use in cooking.

Have you ever had a homemade pizza with just a little garlic and basil, topped with mozzarella or provalone cheese?  I can make a meal of it!

I've reposted the following information several times, but it is great information for anyone wanting to grow one of the easiest plants ever.  

Basil just loves to be pinched regularly and will reward you with thick bushy plants that will provide you with more than enough basil for your personal consumption and lots to give away to friends and family.  It is easy to dry and will last forever when stored properly (I use big glass jars with a tight fitting lid.)

Here is some information on growing basil from The Essential Herb Garden website.

GROWING BASIL FROM SEED

Sow the seeds in spring in seed trays and keep indoors or in a heated greenhouse until the seedlings reach the four-leaf stage. Keep well watered at all times whilst the seedlings are growing.

The seedlings can then be easily handled and transplanted out into pots or containers or directly into the garden in a well drained soil, where they can continue growing with the benefits of all the nutrients from the soil.

Plant the seedlings 50cm apart and keep shaded for the first few days and water regularly throughout to ensure healthy growth.

CONDITIONS FOR GROWING BASIL

Although basil likes sun, it must be planted in a sunny, sheltered spot away from wind and draughts.

Don't plant basil until all risk of frost has disappeared. During midsummer basil likes semi-shaded growing conditions.

GROWING BASIL IN THE GARDEN

Growing basil between tomatoes and other vegetables in the greenhouse or garden will benefit both the basil and the other vegetables.

Basil will enhance the flavors of the other vegetables growing around it and will also deter insects.

Growing basil in your garden will attract bees and butterflies if planted outside.

Growing basil under glass in a cool summer is a good way to ensure a lush and healthy plant and supply of leaves. Remember though, if you are growing basil in your garden, you should not plant it next to rue.

GROWING BASIL IN THE KITCHEN OR GREENHOUSE

Basil can quite easily be grown inside as long as it has a light and sunny spot on the windowsill or shelf in the greenhouse. If you keep the plants indoors you should be able to keep your basil growing well into the cooler months.

HARVESTING BASIL

Once the basil has grown to a height of about 15cm, you can start to take off the top sets of leaves. Pinch them out to the next set of leaves growing below. This will ensure a continual growth and should encourage a healthy, bushy basil plant.

Prune your basil every 2 or 3 weeks to ensure a healthy bushy plant.

Basil will continue growing throughout the summer and can ultimately reach up to 60cm in height. If the basil is left to flower, it will produce long spires of small, white tube shaped flowers.

To encourage a supply of leaves throughout the summer and autumn, pinch out the buds as soon as they appear.

BASIL FOLIAGE

Depending on the variety of basil you are growing, the juicy, oval leaves will grow up to 10cm in length and will be a glossy rich green. Basil is highly aromatic with a strong scent reminiscent of cloves.

Basil plants will cross pollinate very easily so if you are collecting and planting your own seeds year after year, you should notice some slight variations which makes growing basil an interesting hobby and pastime.

Get out and get your hands dirty!!

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How to Build a Flower Tower

The possibilities are endless with these flower towers . . . different shapes, sizes, different plants, herb garden . . . love it!

What you will need:

• Flower pot of your choice (For this I will use a 13 inch pot)
• 4-foot galvanized wire fencing with 2-inch x 4-inch openings
• Landscaping Fabric or Movers Stretch Plastic
• Zip Ties
• Garden Spade
• Sharp Knife
• Potting Soil

Instructions

1. First you are going to want to take the wire fencing and shape it so it will make a circular shape. You need to make sure that it is not too wide; it needs to fit in the bottom of your pot. Use zip ties to hold the wire in place.
2. Put a little bit of planter soil in the bottom so it can help hold the wire frame in place.
3. This next part can be a little bit tricky and it just depends on what is easiest for you. You need to wrap the wire frame with the fabric or plastic. It does not matter if you wrap the outside because the flowers should grow enough that it will hide it. You can use the zip ties to hold this in place or tape.
4. Make sure that the wire frame is centered to the pot and where you want it to be. Then pour the potting soil into the top of the frame until it is full.
5. Fill in the pot around the wire frame but not all the way just yet. The reason for this is that some soil will fall from the tower when you are planting the flowers and this is just mainly to help keep things cleaner.
6. Get a sharp knife and start cutting the fabric that is surrounding the frame in the “box like slots.” I used a box cutter but I know people have used scissors and pocket knives. Just a personal preference.
7. Once you cut out a small space in the square gently insert the root ball of the flower in the soil. Be gentle that you don’t damage the roots but firm enough that the plant won’t fall out.
8. Add some flowers to the top of the tower!
9. Fill in the rest of the pot with soil and water the plant. When watering the plant you want to water it enough that you can compact the soil but not so much that you shock the plant.

This project comes from the blog Mom To Bed By 8 . . . 

to go to the original article which includes

 more photos, click here.

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Beautiful container plantings

Seems like I love container planting more and more as time goes by.  I love being creative and taking inspiration from other gardeners to come up with my own creations.  

Although there are many wonderful websites to inspire us, my latest favorite is Fine Gardening Magazine's website.  Of course, the website is my photo source!

Today's inspiration is a glimpse of Chanticleer Garden.

Looks like this gorgeous and unique container is more of a mini raised bed, put together with pieces of slate, cut in various sizes.  My idea is to make the pieces made of concrete . . . the forms would be super easy to make.  

Two of them placed diagonally would be awesome looking!  Wouldn't it?  I would love to see this exact design on a larger scale, placed diagonally, as the focal point of a front yard.  Awesome!  We are looking for ideas for raised beds as an alternative to way too much grass in the front yard and this design would be great.

Color variations are endless by using concrete tints or by painting them.  Anyway, love the design!  Who knows?  We may gather the energy to get this project done after the huge tree stump comes down!

Want to see more from Fine Gardening's article and many

 more ideas for container planting?  Click here

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Cranberry Hibiscus

We have officially started working in the carport jungle getting it cleaned up and organized.

The basil, tomato and pepper seedlings are thriving and we are so excited about getting our vegetable and herb gardens going.  For color in the garden, I have planted rainbow coleus, red salvia and marigold seeds this week.

Today we cut down a pesky cranberry hibiscus that came up out of nowhere in a pile of leaves on the carport . . . in the way!  The plan is to do a mass planting of them in the front yard since they thrive in the full sun and other than keeping them pruned to avoid a leggy plant, they are really maintenance free.  I cut the plant up into a ton of pieces and got the propagation process going.  I've never tried propagating them before, but after doing some research online, they seem to be a very hardy plant which propagates easily.  I also gathered many seed pods that I plan on getting started in the next couple of days.

Since we are gardening on a tight budget, the more plants we can use from existing plants, the better.

Want to know more about the Cranberry Hibiscus?

  Here are some links:

A previous post about these gorgeous plants from this blog.

A plant guide and discussion about this plant from Dave's Garden.

All about the Cranberry Hibiscus plant from the University of Florida.


Are you getting your hands
 dirty in the garden yet?

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Elegant Garden

The elegance of this garden immediately caught my attention when I was browsing through Fine Gardening's garden photo section for some garden inspiration.  

Photo: Courtesy of Barbara Nuffer via Fine Gardening

Since our property is so large and we really don't want to be a slave to the garden as I have been in the past, the general thinking has been to design raised beds around large paths.  Barbara's garden in upstate New York is exactly what has been going through my mind.  Click on the Fine Gardening link to read the entire article featuring her garden and more photos.

An excerpt from the article . . .

"This garden is a raised bed. The shape is a 20-foot-diameter circle with a gravel path at ground level leading to a fountain in the center of the circle, and continuing to a bench. The outer perimeter of the garden is a 2-foot-tall stone wall. The interior wall is pressure treated 1 x 6s cut into 3-foot lengths and sunk into the ground 12 inches. Since portions of this wall are curved, we used metal strapping nailed to the back of the pieces of wood to hold it in place. They are slanted slightly back towards the bed. The shape is really pretty in winter as the sun sets behind it. A natural stream is down the hill behind the garden so you hear running water as a backdrop.

We lined the bed with black plastic with some drainage holes punched in it. My soil mixture included 6 cubic foot bags of coarse texture vermiculite. We mixed this with potting soil that contained lots of peat. This was suitable because I was planning to use acid-loving plants. We also mixed in two parts of topsoil. The proportions were one part vermiculite to one part potting soil to two parts topsoil. The bed was well moistened and mulched with finely ground cedar bark."

Awesome inspiration!

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Raised Beds

Need some inspiration for your spring garden?

Click here for an awesome gallery of raised beds!

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Bamboo accents and incredible lighting

This yard reminds me that you can decorate the outdoors as you do the indoors.  Love the uplights to highlight the awesome bamboo accents.  Love this yard!

Click here to see more photos.


Photo: Courtesy of Susan Wawrzynowicz via Fine Gardening

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We are gearing up for the tomato growing season and waiting for our seeds to arrive in the mail.  Although we should have started growing the seedlings mid-January, it is better late than never!

As the Captain and I have done research on growing tomato plants, I have been updating my tomato page for my website, DonitaWorld.com.

Check out my updated tomato page if you are growing your own tomatoes this season.  I love visiting websites to get inspiration and great tips on how to grow the best tomatoes possible.  

Click on the graphic to go there . . .

For Florida gardeners and those who live in similar

climates, check out my Florida page too.

I'm so excited about getting my hands in the dirt again!!

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Container gardening in the landscape

Love the simplicity of the container plants in this gorgeous Tennessee garden.

Fine Gardening has featured Jeff Calton's beautiful garden, which is a mix of landscaped areas with lush lawns, trees, lots of blooms and container gardens.

Click here to go to the article . . .


Photo: Courtesy of Jeff Calton via Fine Gardening

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February Bromeliads

The massive plantings of bromeliads with their red blooms provide a burst of color in this gorgeous tropical scene.  The water garden runs along a pond that is complete with fish, turtles and different types of birds who love to hang out in this area.  Do you blame them?  

This is one of the most serene and beautiful scenes at Busch Gardens!

We will get more photos from this area next time we visit!

The landscapers at Busch Gardens have cleverly used a mass planting of similar bromeliad plants in yellow and red to really provide that pop of color, bordering them with another mass planting of a variegated variety.  They bring excitement to an otherwise green raised bed.

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