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How To Grow Fresh Basil Indoors – The One Simple Secret To Success!

Did you know that you can grow and enjoy delicious fresh basil indoors all winter long? And – that it’s easier than you probably ever thought possible?

For us, having fresh basil around is a must. We use it in everything – whether it be in sauces, soups, chicken dishes, bread, pizzas – or simply as a garnish. Having a fresh supply on hand is never an issue during the growing season – not only does it grow well outdoors in the garden, but in pots and containers as well.

But once winter arrives – finding freshly harvested basil can be a whole different story. Although you can freeze basil from your summer harvest for winter use, there is just something about using it fresh that makes it all the more delicious for us.

fresh basil indoors in the winter
Growing basil in the winter is actually quite easy – and can it ever add a fresh taste to all of your dishes!

Unfortunately, buying it “fresh” in the supermarket in the winter is rarely a viable option. By the time basil makes it to your local supermarket, it is usually already a few days old – or older! And, of course, with every day that passes before its arrival, that super-fresh flavor continues to fade away.

The good news? With one simple secret, you can grow basil indoors with ease all winter long!

How To Grow Fresh Basil Indoors – The One Simple Secret To Success

When it comes to successfully growing basil indoors, the biggest issue of all is light. Basil needs at least eight hours of good light to survive and thrive. Without it, plants can just never seem to grow and develop size – or their flavor.

Unfortunately, eight hours of good lighting can be tough to find in a windowsill. In fact, it can be nearly impossible. Especially through the long, dark winter months that seem to drag on forever. The arc of the winter sun is simply too low and short to provide enough lighting for success.

It’s not that basil won’t grow if it only receives four to six hours of light. It certainly can at least survive in a windowsill with less than eight hours. However, with those conditions, you’ll likely end up with weak, spindly plants – and a far less flavorful harvest!

growing basil in a window
Basil can survive with window lighting – but it certainly won’t thrive. Here, the basil struggles to develop good coloring – or flavor!

So what is a basil lover to do to successfully grow it indoors? Since most home gardeners aren’t fortunate enough to have a greenhouse at their disposal, the answer is to give them supplemental artificial light to keep them growing strong and healthy. And before you think that might be expensive or difficult to do – as it turns out – that couldn’t be further from the truth!

Using Simple LED Lighting To Grow Basil Indoors

Much like when starting annual vegetable and flower seeds indoors, ordinary LED shop bulbs will provide more than enough light to grow basil. There is simply no need for expensive or fancy grow lights to grow healthy basil plants.

There are now a whole slew of inexpensive models on the market that make growing indoors a breeze. And they actually look great doing it too! We have been using a few table top models that allow you to grow three to four plants at a time with zero issues. Affiliate Link: Wiaxulay Grow Lights, Full Spectrum Plant Light for Indoor Plants

It used to be that grow lights were incredibly expensive – and bulky. But the newer LED models available now can sit on the counter or a small desk – and allow you to grow fresh herbs like basil with ease. And even better, they operate for pennies a day.

We use our lights for helping to keep fresh oregano, rosemary and other herbs growing all winter too. What really makes tabletop versions nice is they are adjustable in height. It also makes them easy to use to start seeds – which can be perfect for those only needing to start a single small flat of seeds.

desktop grow lights
LED desktop grow lights make growing basil indoors a breeze. The lights adjust up and down to the size of your plant, and can even be used for starting flower and vegetable seeds too.

Growing With LED Lighting – How To Grow Fresh Basil Indoors

When it comes to using artificial light for growing basil, one important thing to note is that the lights don’t need to be on all day. In fact, they don’t even have to be on for a full 8 hours if you are using the lights in conjunction with window lighting.

Basil will thrive with basic care as long as it gets eight (8) hours of total light. That can come partially from a sunny window and supplemental light, or completely from supplemental light if you so choose. The only key is making sure plants get that all-important total of eight hours of light each day.

When growing with LED lighting, the secret is to simply keep the lights within a few inches of the plants. For hanging lights, this means dropping the lights down near the top canopy of leaves. For side lights, keep them close, making sure to occasionally turn the plants if a portion is not well lit.

Growing Basil From Seed Indoors – How To Grow Fresh Basil Indoors

As for planting and growing fresh basil – the best, easiest and most economical way is with seeds. Affiliate Link: Basil Seed Variety Packs

All you need are a few 4 to 6 inch pots, potting soil, and basil seeds. Fill the pots with a light, well-draining potting mix, leaving about an inch of space at the top. For basil, ordinary potting soil is more than good enough to power healthy, robust plants.

To plant, sprinkle a few seeds across the surface of each pot, then cover them with a thin 1/4 inch deep layer of potting soil. Water gently to moisten the soil without making it soggy – and place the pots in a warm spot.

Once the seeds germinate, thin to one seedling per pot- and then it’s time to light them up! Again, just make sure your plants are getting around 8 hours of full light each day. There is little need to fertilize as basil requires very little from the soil. Water only when the soil dries out as basil will suffer more from overwatering than underwatering.

Harvesting & Replanting – How To Grow Fresh Basil Indoors

Basil leaves can be harvested once the plants reach about six inches in size. You can usually get about two months of harvesting indoors from a basil plant before the plant begins to get a little woody. When this happens, the flavor begins to fade from its leaves.

For us, we like to start a new plant about once a month through winter to keep the fresh taste coming on. Here is to growing fresh basil indoors this winter – and keeping the flavor coming on even as the snow flies outside! Happy Gardening – Jim & Mary.

Old World Garden Farms

Jim and Mary Competti have been writing gardening, DIY and recipe articles and books for over 15 years from their 46 acre Ohio farm. The two are frequent speakers on all things gardening and love to travel in their spare time.

As always, feel free to email us at thefarm@owgarden.com with comments, questions, or to simply say hello! You can sign up for our free email list in the subscribe now box in the middle of this article. Follow us on Facebook here : OWG Facebook. This article may contain affiliate links.