Light
Full sun in an open position.
Learn how to care for your green friend
Cardinal Basil
Ocimum basilicum · Cardinal Basil
Herbs · Planned variety
Meet your green friend.
Cardinal basil has oval green leaves and conspicuous reddish flower heads.
A space where it can thrive
Grow as a cultivated garden crop in a bed or suitably sized container. The illustrated nursery pot is a presentation, not a recommendation for the mature plant’s root space.
Ask about availabilityAvailability, size, pot and price will be confirmed in store. Pictures illustrate the plant type.
Studio illustration. Appearance varies with age, variety and growing conditions.
Your care routine
Watering
Keep the root zone evenly moist, not saturated. Water the soil rather than repeatedly wetting leaves.
Soil & drainage
Warm, fertile, well-drained soil or container compost.
Temperature
Frost-tender crop: start with warmth and move outside only after cold weather has passed.
Planting
Start in warmth and bright light; transplant after frost when the soil is warm. Most compact types need about 20–25 cm spacing.
Harvest
Pick leafy tips lightly, or retain the reddish flowering heads for an ornamental display. Routine pinching of every flower bud is not necessary for this type.
Through the seasons
Grow in warmth and protect from cold nights. Choose whether you want leaves or the decorative flower heads instead of automatically removing all flowering growth.
When your plant needs help
- Unlike a leaf-only basil, it can be grown for its ornamental flower heads without routinely pinching every flower bud.
Pets & little ones
This guide covers a cultivated garden crop. Confirm the identity and the edible part before harvesting; wash produce and keep unverified plants away from children and pets.
Grow with your neighbourhood store.
Independent, family-owned and right here in Uptown New Westminster. Browse before your visit and keep this guide handy at home.
Visit The Golden BazaarCare references
Guidance is a starting point. Adjust watering to your plant, pot, light and season; follow fertilizer labels and check outdoor cultivar hardiness.