Does large leaf basil bolt when it gets hot...

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Cottage_Rose Cedar Springs, MI(Zone 5b) Jun 05, 2006

or can you keep cutting it back for more re-growth?
Any tips appreciated...I'm growing it this year for the first time.

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critterologist Frederick, MD(Zone 6b) Jun 05, 2006

I think most basil tries to flower as the summer goes along, but you can just keep pruning it back to prevent this. I leave 2 pairs of leaves on a stem or branch, and then pinch through the stem right above the second set of leaves. Where you have pinched, the stem will branch! So regular pinching/harvesting not only prevents bolting, it also produces big, bushy plants! Once a branch flowers, I think the flavor of its leaves gets a little bitter, so I wait until the end of summer to let a few branches flower to produce seed. The leaves on any nonflowering branches (ones that you've pinched back for new growth) still seem to taste fine.

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