After two summers of failing to grow basil due to over-sowing it, this summer I finally succeeded in thinning the seedlings enough so that a few of them could grow up.
While they were still tiny, with four or six leaves, I picked a few leaves and chewed them and was very happy with the result. I thought I’d better let them grow up a bit before I started to harvest handfuls of leaves. I had heard that you have to pick it before it flowers, or it will start to taste “strong.”
Last night I picked the top half of most of the plants. They had not yet flowered. I put them on an Azerbaijani-style salad platter and served it with the rest of the fancy dinner I had cooked.
The basil was terrible. Not even edible–I couldn’t even swallow or chew, I had to spit it out right away. The taste is terribly strong and chemical, and had an anaesthetic effect on my mouth.
What on earth has gone wrong? I grew them in Miracle-Gro potting soil that said it was safe for vegetables.
The obvious question is - what variety of basil is this, and is it the same as what you’ve liked before?
There are many types of basil, some stronger than others, a few with lemon or other unusual flavors, and ornamental types that may or may not be good with food.
Young tender seedling leaves probably are blander than the large adult leaves.
Soil might influence flavor, along with other growing conditions (i.e. rain or lack of it).
I planted three kinds, sweet basil, Genovese basil, and purple basil. They all have the same problem. I have pots of cilantro and parsley in the same place and with the same soil, and they are fine.
ETA: Since I’ve never successfully grown basil before, I’ve always eaten what I could buy at the supermarket. I am no newbie to eating the stuff, just to growing it.
Well, then I’m stumped (unless the dog peed on them or something :eek: ).
A perfect thread for Cafe Society. Moved.
samclem GQ moderator
Are you sure what grew was actually basil, not some other plant? (either because of mislabelled seeds or simple failure to germinate, followed by the germination of weed seeds already present in the compost).
Heat and sun do make many herbs stronger. Maybe you just don’t know what fresh cut tastes like. You did say you only bought it in a store. Varieties vary greatly in taste for all herbs.
My first thought was that you must have picked some weed leaves by accident. I’ve done that before when I picked lettuce out of my garden and it was quite a surprise in the middle of my salad!
Do the leaves smell like basil? That’s always my first test when I am weeding the garden and I see something that looks like basil…if it smells like basil then it usually is. I’ve got a couple of basil seedlings coming up that have that lemony smell, can’t wait until they get big enough to pick!