You can try to keep basil through the winter . However, sweet basil is meant to live its life cycle within one year and thereafter go to seed. At the end of the season, though, you can try to keep it alive by moving potted basil indoors.
Keep your plant protected from the morning cold by placing it indoors. Even when basil can survive the cold months of winter, you need to accept this popular plant for what it is: An annual herb. Basil has many wonderful properties. These include a great flavor, lovely fragrance, and prolific harvesting.
We discovered Generally, its growth cycle doesn’t include overwintering; rather it dies down and the hard seeds wait in the ground over winter and then germinate during the spring thaw. When temperatures dip, basil suffers cold damage almost immediately in the form of blackened leaves. Therefore, basil and cold weather do not gibe.
Well, but come the winter months and the cold, basil’s tolerance will be tested. It can sustain temperatures of around the 40 F range . Unfortunately, once the thermometer drops down to around 32 F, your basil will get damaged. This herb is not going to fully die, but the damage will be clear.
An answer is that If the cold snap really drops the mercury, a string of Christmas lights beneath the covered basil plants will help retain some heat under their covering. There may be some minor basil cold damage, but the plants will likely survive .
What happens to Basil when it freezes?
Once temperatures hit freezing (32 degrees F or 0 degrees C) , your basil isn’t likely to survive for long. Basil is an ideal plant to grow during the heat of summer and isn’t meant to last over the chilly winter season. The normal life cycle of basil means the plant will die in the winter and drop its seeds.
Can you grow Basil in winter?
If you live in a region that gets plenty of sun and stays warm year-round, your basil could survive the winter . You shouldn’t attempt to grow basil outdoors during cold weather , but sometimes late spring and early fall bring unexpected frosty temperatures.
One more inquiry we ran across in our research was “Can I grow Basil indoors in the winter?”.
One source claimed if you already have a favorite basil plant that produces lots of tasty leaves, there’s no reason why you can’t keep enjoying it indoors throughout the fall and winter. Placed in a cozy spot on a sunny windowsill, it will thrive throughout the cold months. Come summer, you can replant it outdoors .
Do basil plants come back every year?
Sweet Basil ( Ocimum basilicum) is an annual herb in the culinary herb garden. Some extra things to look into: basil grows easily from seed, 3 growing basil as a year-round plant, 2 growing new basil plants each year, or 4 questions related to basil plant lifespan.
Is there a way to extend the life of Basil?
There are a couple of other varieties of basil that are hardier and tend towards a perennial life cycle. Generally, the end of summer or first part of fall heralds the end of season basil harvest, but is there a way to extend basil’s life at the end of the season? You can try to keep basil through the winter.
However, sweet basil is meant to live its life cycle within one year and thereafter go to seed. At the end of the season, though, you can try to keep it alive by moving potted basil indoors.