Learn to grow basil from seeds indoors
Basil has an amazing aroma and is used as a condiment. Growing basil seeds in a city apartment will provide a family with healthy greenery for the whole year. The value of the leaves lies in the content of essential oils and vitamins PP, B1, B2, C.
It is an annual plant with a straight, branched stem, densely covered with leaves and a superficial root. Leaves of various basil varieties differ in color (light green to purple), corrugated in structure, carved, flat. Flowering occurs in late July - early August, when a sufficient amount of essential oils with a pleasant aroma accumulates in the leaves. Read about:basil benefits and harms to men's health!
Basil varieties
There are varieties of basil seeds that are suitable for growing in pots and containers. on the windowsill:
- Spoon-shaped, clove exudes a smell reminiscent of a mixture of laurel with cloves, is distinguished by light leaves.
- Yerevan has a pleasant aroma, reminiscent of allspice tea.
- The Baku one smells like cloves and mint, the leaves are purple with a brownish tint.
- Violet is characterized by large, purple-colored leaves, has a very delicate taste.
- Lemon is a rare variety that grows as a small bush with pale green leaves, has a pronounced lemon aroma.
- The dwarf grows no higher than 20 cm, it is a bush with small green or purple leaves, collected in a ball.
Basil is chosen depending on taste preferences. The earliest ripening dates are in the varieties "Clove", "Lemon", "Dwarf".
To grow basil from seeds on a windowsill in an apartment or house, they acquire undersized species.
When to plant basil seeds
To get a good harvest, you need to know when to plant seeds for growing basilica in the apartment. This plant loves warmth and sunlight, with a lack of them, the leaves will be thinned and weak.
The best time to plant seeds in pots is late February, early March. The plant will have time to form and the period of active growth will fall on a long daylight hours. If the landing is carried out at other times, it will not have enough sunlight.
When growing basil year-round on a windowsill, you need to install fluorescent lamps and turn them on for 4-5 hours in the evening, and on a rainy day, the light should be on for 10-12 hours.
Growing basil from seeds
Consider how to grow basil on a windowsill at home. When you have decided on the type of plant, prepare containers and soil for planting it.
Small pots or plastic cups are suitable for planting seeds. A layer of expanded clay drainage is laid at the bottom. Fertile soil with organic fertilizers is required. You can buy it ready-made or prepare it yourself.
The sequence of actions when planting basil seeds:
- The seeds are kept for 2 weeks in a warm place.
- Before planting, they are soaked for a day in warm water, then kept in a weak solution of manganese for 2 hours.
- Moisten the ground and plant several seeds in one container to a depth of 10 mm. Excess, weaker shoots are removed after germination.
- If planting is carried out in large containers, the distance between the seeds should be more than 5 cm. The seedlings are covered with plastic wrap, which provides a greenhouse effect.To prevent the soil from growing moldy, raise it every day for 10 minutes.
If the temperature is maintained within 22-28 degrees, the first shoots will appear in 1-2 weeks. After that, the film is removed and the containers are placed in a bright, warm place, protected from drafts. When 3-4 leaves appear on the stem, it must be transplanted in such a way that there is a liter of soil per stem.
Caring for the basil in the apartment
We need regular watering and spraying of the leaves. To saturate the soil with oxygen in pots with formed plants, it is gently loosened every 10-14 days.
They are fed with mineral or organic fertilizers once every 30 days from the moment the branches grow on the sides of the stem.
When the bushes grow of sufficient size, they begin to break off the outer leaves, this promotes better growth and postpones the flowering time.
Fresh, dried, frozen leaves are used for cooking.
Bloom must not be allowed. When the color appears, the leaves become bitter and unusable.
Growing basil from seeds on a windowsill in an apartment or a country house does not give owners much difficulty. Subject to the rules described in this article, the plant will delight the owners all year round.