Move over from Sweet Basil and learn about other Types of Basil in this article. The 4 Best Basil Varieties that are different in taste and appearance!
Everyone knows the usual suspects when it comes to basil. Who hasn’t grown–or at least tasted–the large leaf, sweet, Italian types? Basil being such an awesome herb to grow in a pot, almost all of us have tried it. But there are more interesting basils to try, and some of them are particularly good for us container gardeners.
You’re not going to get a suggestion for one of the purple varieties of basil, although they are great but becoming pretty ubiquitous. For example, that All-America Selections winner ‘Purple Ruffles.’ Great basil but very common. Here in this post, you’ll find out the basil varieties that you might not have heard of:
1. Lime
Ocimum bacilicum ‘Americanum,’ also known as Lime Basil, has the wonderful citrusy scent as lemon basils, but sweeter, and not at all Pine-Sol-esque, like a lot of them can be. It forms compact plants that are less than 2 feet tall, and the leaves are…you guessed it! Lime green.
2. Pistou
‘Pistou,’ is the best mini basil to try. It forms perfectly round mounds of tiny leaves. The whole plant is no more than 10 inches tall and wide. Several of them would look great lined up in a window box. The leaves are very mild flavored and sweet. If you prefer a more freeform mini basil, check out ‘Minimum.’
3. Lemon Sweet Dani
Even Home Depot and Lowe’s carry lemon basil these days, but to be honest, not all lemon basils are created equal. ‘Lemon Sweet Dani’ is by far the lemoniest while still having a pleasant flavor. More like a drink of lemonade than a bite of lemon.
4. Serata
With mixing ornamentals with edibles and using edibles as ornamentals being all the rage these days, it would be a great misfortunate if we don’t add the basil ‘Serata,’ which is, one of the prettiest basils out there. The leaves are lobed and ruffled. Would look great in a mixed container with flowers.
