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its time to take the plunge! Photo - duckeesue/Shutterstock.com
There are many types of basil to choose from: Thai, lemon, Greek perennial, globe, holy and purple, but regular sweet basil is indispensable, so start
with that, then add to your collection. Basil grows easily from seed or seedlings. Use a fertiliser high in nitrogen to encourage leaves rather than
flowers. (Fertilisers high in potassium and phosphorus are developed to encourage flowering so avoid those.) Pick off any flowers as soon as you spot
them, and harvest often to encourage new stems with new fresh leaves. Next autumn allow some flowers to develop and collect an envelope of dried seeds
for next spring.