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Grow Sweet Genovese basil for generous harvests of tender, extra-large dark-green leaves with the classic aroma and flavour loved in homemade pesto. Pick the young tips regularly for salads, sauces and other fresh dishes while encouraging fuller, more productive plants.
Ready to grow your basil? Follow our step-by-step Basil Grow Guide for sowing, germination and care advice tailored to Sweet Genovese basil.
Quick Grow Facts
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Plant Type: Tender annual culinary herb.
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Seed Form: Raw seed. Treatment status is not confirmed; do not eat seed.
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Scientific Name: Ocimum basilicum
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Common Name: Sweet Genovese basil.
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General Sowing Time: Sow from spring to autumn while conditions are warm. In frost-prone areas, plant out only after frost risk has passed.
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Position: Full sun.
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Sow Depth: 0.5 cm (5 mm); cover lightly.
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Spacing: 40 cm apart. Keep good airflow around the plants in humid gardens.
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Germination: Allow 7-14 days around 20-23°C in home conditions.
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Growth Form and Size: Upright, large-leaved sweet basil; about 45-60 cm high.
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Harvest: Allow about 60-90 days and begin picking once plants are well leafed.
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Available Pack Sizes: 5 g raw seed and 20 g raw seed.
Why Grow Basil Sweet Genovese?
- Extra-large tender leaves make generous kitchen harvests.
- Classic sweet basil flavour is especially well suited to pesto.
- Regular tip-picking encourages more branches and fresh leaves.
- Plants grow well in sunny herb beds and generously sized containers.
Garden Uses
Grow Sweet Genovese near the kitchen in a sunny herb bed or large pot. Pick young tips regularly for pesto, salads, sauces and other fresh dishes.
Growing Notes
- Sow in warm conditions and transplant after frost risk has passed.
- Keep the soil evenly moist but never waterlogged.
- Pinch growing tips above a pair of leaves to encourage branching, and remove flower spikes if leaf harvest is the priority.
- In humid districts, water at soil level in the morning and keep the 40 cm spacing open for airflow.
- In hot, dry districts, mulch after the soil has warmed and water deeply at the root before plants wilt.
- Follow the instructions on the packet you receive if they differ.
Brought to you by Ubuntuberg Seeds, where our mission is to cultivate humanity & harvest unity. Ubuntuberg Seeds: the highest quality seed stock in all of Southern Africa, sourced from sustainable farms, guaranteeing you the best quality seed stock.
