Lemon Basil

Lemon Basil stands apart from ordinary sweet basil thanks to its bright, unmistakable citrus aroma, the same lemony scent that releases the moment you brush a leaf. Its foliage is finer and more delicate than common basil: slender, narrow leaves in a soft pale green, carried on airy, open stems. The flavour leans fresh and zesty rather than sweetly peppery, which makes it a favourite for herbal teas and cold drinks, for finishing salads and fish, and for Southeast Asian dishes where its clean lemon note shines. It is just as welcome on a sunny balcony, where its scent fills the air whenever the plant is touched.

Planting

This is a warm-season annual that cannot tolerate frost. Start seed indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last spring frost, or sow and transplant outdoors only after all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed; wait to move plants outside until nighttime temperatures stay reliably above 10 C. Sow the seed shallowly, about 0.6 cm deep. Germination usually takes 5 to 10 days and is best at a soil temperature of roughly 18 to 21 C, with seeds sprouting well around 20 C. Once seedlings have formed 2 to 3 pairs of true leaves, thin or transplant them to their final spacing; indoor-started plants are typically set out about 6 weeks after sowing, once frost has passed. Space full-size plants about 15 to 30 cm apart, or 10 to 20 cm apart for cut-leaf production, with direct-sown rows about 45 cm apart. Give it a full-sun spot with at least 6 to 8 hours of bright light each day; it copes with part sun but truly thrives in a warm, sheltered, sunny position.

Fertilizing

Work a low-nitrogen starter feed into the soil before planting, such as a 5-10-5 blend at about 85 g per 3 metres of row, or a 5-10-10 mix at roughly 1.4 kg per 9 square metres. If growth slows about two months after planting, side-dress with around 0.1 to 0.2 kg of calcium nitrate per row section to supply a nitrogen boost. For plants in containers, feed with a diluted balanced liquid fertilizer every 3 to 6 weeks. Bear in mind that basil grown in the ground in good soil often needs no extra feeding at all, while container plants benefit most from an organic-based balanced liquid feed; avoid high-potassium feeds.

Care

Lemon Basil is not drought tolerant and wants a fairly steady supply of soil moisture. Water deeply about every 7 to 10 days, more often for plants in pots, keeping the soil evenly moist. Water at the base in the morning and avoid wetting the leaves, which helps limit disease. Watch for the common diseases of basil, including downy mildew (a fluffy growth on leaf undersides), Fusarium wilt, gray mold, bacterial leaf spot, and damping-off and root rots, along with pests such as aphids, slugs and snails, spider mites, whiteflies, Japanese beetles and leafhoppers. To keep the plant bushy, pinch out the terminal shoot tips at least once a week. Begin picking young leaves as you need them, and for the best flavour harvest just before flowering while pinching off flower buds as they appear; harvest in the cool of the early morning. For a full cut, take the plant back to about 10 to 15 cm above the ground to encourage fresh regrowth. Plants usually start to flower in mid- to late summer, and flowering turns them woody while making the leaves more bitter and reducing yield, so remove flower stems to keep the leaves at their best. In Egypt the main concern is cold nights below about 10 C rather than summer heat. In the Nile Delta and Lower Egypt, start seed under protection or in a seedbed in late January to February and transplant out in March to April once nights are reliably above 10 C, for a long cutting season from June through October; avoid sowing into the cold of mid-winter. In the warmer winters of Upper Egypt the frost-free window is wider, so transplanting can begin a few weeks earlier, from late February into March, and a second autumn crop is feasible; during the most intense summer weeks give consistent moisture and some afternoon relief, since basil is not drought tolerant and suffers under heat stress. Open-field sowing in mid-winter (December to January) is not advised in either region because of the cold nights.