Last edited by shiny on November 08, 2026. View history
Sweet Basil
- 4
- plantings
- 1
- harvest
- 2
- seed packets
Sweet basil facts
Lifespan
Row Spacing
30cm median of members' seed packetsGermination
10–14 days median of members' seed packetsWhen to sow
Grown for
leaf harvested 1 timeCrop cycle
Optimal light
What are growing degree days?
A plant grows with warmth, not with days. A growing degree day is one day's worth of useful warmth: how many degrees the day's average temperature is above the lowest temperature the crop grows at. Add them up from planting and you know how far along the crop is, whatever the calendar says.
Say that lowest temperature is 10°C. A day averaging 17°C gives 7 growing degree days. A day averaging 8°C gives none, as it is too cold for the crop to grow. That is why the same lettuce takes about 50 days in a summer and 90 in an autumn: it needs the same total warmth either way.
For sweet basil, the FAO EcoCrop database gives a lowest growing temperature of 7°C and a shortest growing cycle of 80 days at its best temperature, about 1240 growing degree days to a first harvest.
Where you've told us where your garden is, we use this and the weather there to predict when your sweet basil will be ready to harvest. We don't use it for how long a plant lives or when it finishes: we go by what members have logged for that.
Growing sweet basils
- Sow seeds indoors 6 weeks before planting out
- Harden off the seedlings 1 week before planting out
- Water regularly at planting out every week
- Pinch out the growing tips 3 weeks after planting out every 2 weeks
- Pick leaves regularly at first harvest every week
- Pinch off flower buds 8 weeks after planting out every 2 weeks
- Pull out finished plants 12 weeks after first harvest
How members grow sweet basils
Sunniness
Planted from
Harvested for
Plant sweet basils with
Photos
Photos
Sweet basil crops
Sweet basil plantings
Video
Where sweet basils grow
Only plantings by members who have set their locations are shown.
What people are saying about sweet basils
Nobody has posted about sweet basils yet.
Sign in or sign up to post your tips and experiences growing sweet basils.
Who's planted sweet basils
- CloCkWeRX Laundry Seedling Area · Rosewater, South...
- snake 2023 · Moonville, OH
- bigblen Containers · Rapaki Road,...
Sweet basil harvests
-
bigblen harvested 12.
almost 7 years ago
bigblen harvested 12.
Find sweet basil seeds
View all sweet basil seeds
- Purchase seeds via Ebay
- Sign in or sign up to list your seeds to trade.
Time to harvest
If sown now, expect a first harvest in about 80 to 270 days.
From the growing cycle in the FAO EcoCrop database, which is the same wherever it is grown.
Ecological requirements
Data from the FAO EcoCrop database for Ocimum basilicum L.
| Family / Taxonomy | Magnoliopsida Asteridae Lamiales Labiatae |
|---|---|
| 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) |
Learn more about sweet basils
Resources outside Growstuff.
