Annual Flavoring Plants 
Common name Botanical name family 
Sweet Basil - Ocimum basilicum (Mint ) 
The glossy, oval, green leaves of Sweet Basil re- 
semble those of a pepper plant. The sweet,spicy flavor 
is well suited to tomato dishes and salads. Basil is 
a hot weather plant,to be sown or set out only after 
the ground is thoroughly warm. The first leaves may be 
cut for flavoring when the plants are six inches tall 
but the main crop of leafy tips is ready for drying 
in late July when the 2% foot tall, branching plants 
are in bud. The small white flowers are not conspicuous 
but cut well for aroma in flower arrangements. Tender 
Sweet Basil thrives in hot,humid weather but needs a 
sunny location. Cut all the plants within a few inches 
of the ground before the first frost and hang up in 
in bunches until the leaves are crisp enough to strip 
off by rubbing lightly over a coarse screen. 
Bush Basil - Ocimum minimum (Mint) 
A dwarf,much bushier form of Basil with tin 
roundly ovate leaves in dense clusters. It has the 
Same inimitable taste and nature as Sweet Basil but 
looks far more attractive in the garden because of its 
mounded, box-like habit of growth. The neat look of the 
foot high, rounded miniature plants makes them espec- 
lally favored for edgings. Sow seed in full sun after 
the ground is thoroughly warm,thin or transplant to 
stand ten inches apart. 
Purple Basil-O.basilicum var. purpureum (Mint) 
Deep purple leaves and pink flowers are of unusual 
beauty in the garden and bouquets. The scent and flavor 
are a little different, and more tea-like, from Sweet 
Basil. Give the same care as Sweet Basil. If plants do 
not receive enough sun,the leaves become mottled with 
green. 2% feet tall. 
