Do you have to cut off the flowers?

Flowering time of the shrub basil

That perennial Shrub basil is available in different varieties. Their flowers differ partly in color, but also in the flowering period. Here are the dates of some of the popular varieties in this country:

• "African Blue" blooms from May to September
• the flower color is pink-purple
• "Greek shrub basil" and "mammoth" rarely bloom
• "Cypriot basil" flowers relatively late
• "Magic Blue" blooms in bright purple from June

Flowers as a cooking ingredient

The flowers are edible! The best reason for cutting off the flowers is therefore theirs use in the kitchen. But their taste is more bitter than that of the green leaves. Some connoisseurs welcome this bitter note. Those who do not like to eat them can still benefit from them. For example, by soaking them in vinegar to flavor it. The flower arrangements are also ideally suited as colorful food decorations.

Cut off for more leaf green

Even if the basil blossoms don't suit your taste, you should still cut them off. Of course, their existence makes the plant more attractive. But the removal of the flowers also has advantages.

• this saves energy
• the stalled leaf growth is picking up speed again
• you can do more with it to harvest

Basil flowers for the vase

Cut Remove basil flowers with their stems and leaves. The flowering branches make a good addition to other cut flowers. In the vase you spread your typical scent quickly. They are also pretty to look at.

You can also dry basil flowers well. Either just the flowers themselves or with a stem. They are then used as a scented bouquet in dry bouquets or placed in small bowls as a fragrance dispenser.