Basil Blooms »Uses of the Flowers

This is how you prevent bloom for a long herbal enjoyment

With its flowers, the herb plant attracts busy insects as pollinators. In this way, basil pursues its central goal of reproducing as numerous as possible. Only from pollinated flowers can seeds develop, which transform into new plants after germination. Therefore, the royal herb invests all of its energy in the flower, which takes place at the expense of the aroma in the leaves.

Since blooming basil stops growing and gradually dies, experienced herb lovers counteract this process consistently. The following measures can prevent or at least delay flowering:

• Basil regularly to harvest
• do not pluck individual leaves, but rather 5 centimeter long shoot pieces
• leafless shoots die hopelessly
• leave at least 2 eyes on it when cutting whole branches

Harvest when the first buds appear at the latest. The cutting of the shoot tips also contributes to further branching and a bushy habit. What is not used fresh in the kitchen is suitable for

Freeze or drying. Blossoming basil is still edible, but it tastes unpleasantly bitter. By harvesting the branches in good time, experienced hobby gardeners preserve the wonderful aroma.

Blossoming basil - this is how you enjoy the flowers

as Mint family Blossoming basil is a feast for the eyes in the bed and on the balcony. Depending on variety white, pink or purple flowers develop. As if that weren't enough, the flowers are edible. Since their taste arrives on the tongue as slightly bitter and less aromatic than the leaves, gourmets use basil blossoms as a decoration on salads or to garnish warm dishes.

In addition, blooming basil offers a delicious variant for the kitchen, because it provides the most important ingredient for the unique basil blossom vinegar. For this place Mix 80 flowers in 200 milliliters of white wine vinegar and add 15 leaves of royal herb and peppercorns to taste. After four weeks, strain through a fine sieve and fill into a bottle - done.

Blooming basil - this is how you harvest the seeds

If you can't get enough of the enchanting flowers of the royal herb, let nature take its course. Flowering basil develops rich seed pods in the course of autumn, which are ideally suited for propagation sowing. After all the flowers have wilted, the 1-2 millimeter small fruits ripen inside the calyx. First pick off the withered leaves. Then harvest the seeds like this:

• Wipe the dried flowers over a bowl with your fingers
• grind the flowers between your hands
• sift through the mixture of flower remnants and seeds repeatedly
• Pour the black seeds on a plate and let them dry for a few days

The harvested seeds can be safely stored in the dark screw-top jar in the cool cellar until they are sown next spring.

This is how the sowing succeeds

In April, the time window opens for sowing the hand-picked seeds that a flowering basil produced in the previous year. Since royal herb does not tolerate temperatures below 10 degrees, only sowing behind glass is possible. Basil shouldn't be used until mid-May outdoors to be planted. So sow Correct Königskraut:

• small Growing pots(€ 16.68 at Amazon *) fill with peat sand, seed soil or similar poor, permeable substrate
• slightly moisten the soil and sprinkle the fine seeds on it
• as Light germs Simply press the seeds lightly with a board
• wait for germination in the partially shaded location at 20 to 25 degrees Celsius

The cotyledons break out of the seeds within 5 to 14 days. Any cover has now done its job. When the seedlings have reached a height of 5 centimeters, they will pricked. Now pamper your pupils for the first time with a very diluted dose of liquid fertilizer. By mid-May they develop into vigorous young plants to be planted in the bed or in the pot to be planted out.

Tips & Tricks

On perennial varieties of basil, the flowering does not affect the aroma of the leaves. In this case, blooming basil does not stop growing and does not develop seed heads. You can enjoy the pink and purple flowers and harvest rich shoots at the same time. In addition, is a wintering possible in the house.