basil, African Blue

latin name: ocimum basilicum ‘African Blue’

zone:  Z10
type: tender perennial
light: full sun or partial shade
height: 12-30” (30-70 cm)

description:  Attractive basil with purple stems and dark green, purple-veined leaves, which have a sweet, camphoraceous aroma.  Beautiful lavender pink flowers attract all kinds of bees to your garden.  Easy to grow and never needs flowers pinched off because African Blue basil will not go to seed and die.   Great landscape plant and indispensable in your herb garden for its color and fragrance.

harvest:  Pick leaves throughout the growing season to use fresh or dry. Never harvest more than 1/3 of the plant at a time.  Also, the more you harvest, the more your plant will produce.    

culinary notes:  Usable for cooking but inferior for flavoring. African Blue is a favorite for flower arrangements as the blooms last 3 to 4 weeks, if water is changed regularly. Why not plant this one just for display and arrangements and save the better tasting basils for culinary purposes?