TYPICAL SPACING25 cm
HERB · ANNUAL
Basil Growing Guide
Plan basil for warm sowing, container or bed spacing, steady watering and repeated leaf harvests.
PLANT PROFILE
Track in My Garden →Basil
Broad planning defaults are available in the connected calculators; variety instructions and local conditions take priority.
INDOOR LEAD6 weeks
BROAD MATURITY60 days
LIFECYCLEAnnual
Give basil the right place before you calculate dates.
Basil grows quickly when it is warm and bright but can stall when temperatures are low. It fits well in containers and bed edges, making it useful where a full vegetable plant would take too much space.
Choose a warm, bright position. In exposed cool gardens, a sheltered container can outperform a larger bed simply because the root zone and air around the plant stay warmer.
Plan the start around the way this plant actually grows.
Seed can be started indoors or under protection, then moved outside after cold-night risk has eased. Avoid starting a very large batch if you only have space for a few mature plants.
Water when the growing medium begins to dry but avoid leaving roots constantly saturated. Pinching growing tips encourages branching. Remove flower spikes if your priority is prolonged leaf production, or allow some plants to flower if pollinator value is part of the plan.
Use maturity as a window, then check the real plant.
Harvest shoots above a pair of leaves so the plant can branch. Frequent light harvesting generally keeps a compact plant more useful than stripping most leaves at once.
Use the seed-start and spacing calculators, then compare basil with neighbouring crops using the companion checker.
How should I use the numbers on this page?
Spacing: 25 cm is the current broad planning default. Do not tighten spacing simply to increase the plant count.
Maturity: 60 days is a broad planning estimate. Weather and cultivar can materially change the real timing.
Local conditions: Frost pockets, wind exposure, soil drainage and container size can make two gardens in the same town behave differently.