Ocimum, Basil, Sweet Basil 'Lime'

I planted Lime Basil all around the perimeter of my garden as a deer and mosquito repellant... it really works! A big bonus is that the ...Read Morehoney bees absolutely love the blooms. I also noticed that vegetables, growing right next to the Lime Basil, had no pests... even the stink bugs stayed clear of it.

A trading pal of mine said that it smells like Fruit Loops Cereal. It's a really wonderful citrus scent. An easy-to-grow plant that's surprisingly heat and drought tolerant.

LOVE THIS PLANT! Grew four groups of Basils from seed this spring and thought I'd see how they stacked up comparatively. Genovese, Swee...Read Moret, Red Rubin and Lime. Started them all on the potting bench in small seedling pots (dozens of 'em) and worked 'em up to larger pots and then into the gardens.

The Lime was the smallest and most different (it isn't Ocimum basilcum) and my initial thought was that it was not going to be a favorite. HOWEVER, of all my various seedlings the LIME had the highest survival rate from tiny seedling to well-rooted plantable stock... so I put it in the garden in many places. Wow am I glad I did.

The plant is smaller than basilicum but it is healthy, thick and vigorous everywhere The color is lime green not the deep green of Genovese. And the flavor is unbelievably potent... no hint of basil at all... just lime (to be accurate, I've not planted a bunch of other Lemon/Lime varieties). I've planted it several places over gladious bulbs and the combo looks good to me: large sword shaped glad leaves piercing a bouquet of lime green.

It does best in parts of my garden that aren't just baked by the sun (South Texas - ouch). If something near it can blow and give it just a hint of shade from time to time (the cluster of glad leaves), it seems to appreciate it.

As another commenter noted: it RACES to flower. I go out and pinch off several dozen little inflorescences every morning on my way out the door. EVERY DAY. (I can see how this might be a problem... I like doing this as it is quick and easy and makes me look closely as different parts of my gardens every morning for 5 minutes.) Very happy with it now.

Looking forward to seeing how it makes through the whole season.

Will grow again next year.

I grew my basil from seed sown in a container partially sunk in the ground for moisture retention. There were probably 10-12 plants in t...Read Morehe pot and they grew into the amazing mound shape that you see in my photo. I recently moved to a new construction house sadly lacking in landscaping appeal so this was quite welcome. From a distance the basil looked like an ornamental shrub planted next to my patio! The butterflies and bees loved the flowers and I loved using the fresh leaves for cooking. I left the plants over winter and they were visited by numbers of juncos who feasted on the seeds. I hope I'm able to duplicate the results this year.

For basil, this one smells really nice and strong (scent holds up well in the heat also)...it is a small-leaved variety and I found it to...Read More grow just fine in a pot. The smaller leaf varieties tend to do better for me in pots than the large leaf types. Probably because they require less water in Houston summers. I'll give it a positive rating, but then there are few basils I dislike!