For more videos on making more of your herbs, check out this playlist:
Imagine if you could buy your basil from the grocery store once, and have an endless supply. Well, you can…with a little know-how.
We’ve all done it- you buy your tasty, aromatic basil in a pot or a pack, only for it to wilt and die days later. If only we could keep it alive so that it not only survives, but thrives and multiplies. There is a way to do this, and in this week’s episode Ben shows us how.
Pass the pasta!
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You can never have enough basil right? So what if you could buy it just once and
from that grow yourself an endless supply? Basil cuttings are simplicity itself to
take, you don’t even need any potting mix all you need is a glass, some scissors,
some water and of course some basil. I love taking basil cuttings from store bought
basil, it gives you a bit of a head start, they root really easily and it means
you get a harvest that much quicker. But today I’m also going to be taking some
cuttings from some other potted basils here including this simply
stunning purple leaved basil, a Thai basil here with real
good aromas for Asian cooking and then this stunning little
greek basil too, lovely in salads. What I’ve got here are two lots of
basil at different stages of life. The guys in the cup here, producing lovely roots
already, these are 10 days old from cuttings and then these guys were potted up last
week and they’re about 1 month old. You can see by the difference
between them how quickly they grow and that’s the secret behind bagging yourself a never-ending supply of this
most magnificent of herbs. I’ve got two lots of herbs from the grocery store. Packet herbs like this and
also potted living herbs. Now packet herbs are nice and cheap, but
they can sometimes be a little bit damaged cause they’ve got this elastic
band that holds them together here which can dig into the stem
and cause it some damage. but you may find that some are perfectly usable. Now what we’re looking for is
something with the nodes intact here and then we can take a cutting, cut just below and then because our cuttings
don’t have any roots as yet we need to reduce some of these
leaves on top, so just nip these off and then you’ve got something like that and we want cuttings between about 8 to
15cm that is kind of 3, 4 to 6in in height. However I’m not convinced these are that great
and they can be a bit hit and miss sometimes so I’m going to take most of my cuttings from
this really healthy-looking, living herb. So what we’re going to do is make
a cut just above a node there, and I’ll explain why in a minute, and
then we’re going to trim these all up. So take off the lowest bit
there, just below the node and remove most of the leaves
leaving just the ones on top. So these are all cuttings of Genovese
or sweet basil, the most common basil that’s got a huge range of
options and uses in the kitchen. So I’ve got my perfect cuttings here,
they’re between 3 to 6in or 8 to 15cm long, I’ve cut just below a leaf node here and I’ve removed most of the leaves to leave just
the ones in top, so these should do very nicely. Next job is to pop them in
a pot and fill it with water so that just the leaves are
sticking proud of the water. These guys are going to go indoors,
onto a sunny window sill to root and they should produce roots
within a matter of days. Now use main’s water here, not rain
water, and do keep it topped up. Should it get cloudy, just swish
it out and put fresh water in there so it’s nice and clear and clean. And all of this lot I cut off,
well this isn’t going to waste, this is going to make me a beautiful
pesto, bung it in a blender, add some pine nuts, a little hard cheese,
some extra virgin olive oil (good quality) and then whizz it all up and that will
make a beautiful accompaniment to pasta or layered onto fish and
then baked in the oven. Mmm! I’m now going to take some more
cuttings using these other plants here. Now when taking cuttings from actively growing
plants, we want just vegetative growth. We don’t want any stems that
have got flower buds on, so it’s something like this nice
and healthy, no flower buds. You can see here that there are buds,
so I won’t take cuttings from this, if I did, it wouldn’t root very
well, it would grow very poorly cause all this wants to do is flower.
So stick with just the leafy growth. [Music] Hello Rosie, how are you
darling? There’s a good girl, always likes to inspect the work and
make sure we’re doing a good job. Now I’ve got my cuttings taken here and it’s
exactly the same as my grocery store basil I’m going to trim them up to just below a leaf
node, so there, and remove those lowest leaves. Now it might be reasonable to assume
that when we’re taking cuttings, we’re weakening the parent plant
that they’re being taken from, but in fact the opposite is true. When we take a cutting and take it back
down to where there are some branches here what we’re going to do is actually create
new shoots and create an even bushier, stockier plant that’s going to last a lot
longer and ultimately give you more harvests. Let me show you with this plant here. Now, I took a cutting from this about
two weeks ago and if we look closely, here we go, we can see that where I
took the cutting has already healed up and there are two new shoots coming out from the
node here that will form form two new branches. So that one branch is now going to be two and that ultimately done all over the plant,
will create a far bushier plant. I just want to explain something
to make it extra clear. When you take a cutting you’re taking
it from just below a leaf node like that but then you’ve got this bit of stalk
here that’s sort of sticking out. we want to reduce that down to just
above a leaf node, the next one down, cause that’s just going to die off anyway
and it’ll keep everything nice and neat. So let’s take another look at our rooted cuttings. So as I say, these were taken 10 days ago and
the very first roots only showed 4 days ago and now look at them, they grow on so quickly. I reckon that at least a few
of these are good to pot up. Now I like to pot up and grow on my
basil cuttings before planting them either into the ground or a larger container, because they are still quite vulnerable at this
stage and need a little bit of molly-coddling. Now for this you can use any all
purpose peat-free potting mix and then to help with drainage and
because I have it, I’ve got some perlite. Now this isn’t essential, but if you do have perlite lying around
then well it’s worth adding a little bit because it will help to
improve the drainage of our mix and these warmth loving herbs
really really will appreciate that. I’ve got my pots of potting mix and perlite
and then just use your finger to dibber a hole and then hold the cutting by the leaves if
you can, because the stem can be delicate and then just carefully lower down, up to the
same sort of height it was at in the water and then just firm in around
your cutting, like that. I’ve left one here cause the roots are still
quite small, so I’ll give that a few more days. All that’s left to do now is give
these guys a little bit of a drink and because the root system
isn’t that well developed I’m going to have to keep a close eye
on these and water them regularly. But once they do find their feet, I’ll
need to water them a lot less often. So these will go back inside on
a bright window sill to grow on and then once they have got that root system,
they can come out into the direct, outside sun. Now these guys are just two
weeks on from these guys and you can see how much fuller and
bigger, they’ve got new growth here and so they do put on that growth very quickly. Within another month or so you’ll be able
to start cutting off shoots like this to enjoy in your cooking and encouraging
your plants to bush out and grow even more for harvesting later on and, of course,
you’ll be able to take more cuttings to keep this glorious cycle
going on and on and on. Head here next for more on
growing herbs from cuttings including from grocery store
packets of thyme, mint and rosemary. Never ending herbs for next to nothing!
Perfect! I’ll catch you next time.
48 Comments
Howdy, Ben and cute Rosie!👋
Thanks for reminding me to take cuttings to gift some of my garden buddies with new basil plants for their fall gardens. 👩🏾🌾💕
Thanks Ben. I always grow purple basil as a pollinator attractor. 3 or 4 spread out in the planters helps. Mostly grow Genovese green basil to use in Caprese salads, and Italian sauces. Also like to cut and dry some every few weeks for tossing into the blender and making a shaker filler. Another good way to save basil leaves is to cut, wash and add to olive oil and place in resealable bags in the freezer, lasts a few months.
I always put the glass with the cuttings outside, practically into full sun.
Never had any fail.
Any advantages to let them root inside?
Brilliant tips thanks. I just noticed how nice the filming is – pesto looks good. I started a small sad garden, and disabled when first watched you. Now Ive plums, apples, cherry, corn, strawberry and raspberry, rhubarb for my forever crumble, the list just goes on. I cant believe it.
Thanks from Norway,the land with short intens summer
One method I love, which yields fantastic results, is to take the entire basil plant and split it into 2-4 separate pots. It's a simpler alternative to taking cuttings, yet it works like a charm.
*Quick Tip:* Always check the roots of your basil to see if it needs repotting or some root trimming. Most store-bought basil plants suffer from being over-rooted and confined in small pots, requiring either a larger home or division, as I mentioned earlier.
If your basil starts to turn yellow, it isn't always a water issue. Often, the plant is over-rooted and needs more space to grow!
Additionally, I highly recommend placing a saucer beneath the pot and watering the plant through the saucer. This method encourages the roots to grow downward towards the water, promoting healthier root development.
Great video Ben, but when I tried this last year, my new plants, although successful, grew progressively more pointy leaves and were very bitter – any idea why? 🤔
I just watched few of your videos and your knowledge is golden. I am a beginner gardener and I am learning a lot from your videos! Thank you for your content!
Brilliant! Love your videos. They are very interesting
I knew about this and I still learned a lot, thank you so much for your brilliant videos ❤ question: when you say endless supply, does that mean you can grow it inside during winter? Thanks!
Thanks for the tips. I'm going to make a lot of people happy.
greetings from the Netherlands
Brill
Tired of buying them fir £3 a week
Basil grows like weeds. Give it a plot of land, and it quickly takes over. It won't be long before you're trying to figure out how to get rid of it.
But the cycle doesn't go on forever, right? It's for the summer I guess only?
Not just amazing gardening help but cookery ideas as well. What could be better!
Great trick , I didn’t know they would root in water , definitely going to try that, Thanks Ben for your good advice I look forward to all your videos x
Hello Ben. I've noticed some white spots on the leaves of your basil that appear on my plants as well, especially the ones I keep outside. What are they and what can I do to avoid them.
I have tried this but never had much success because the stems keep getting mushy and I end up having to throw them out. This also keeps happening to tomato cuttings btw
So my basil has flowered. Do I save seeds or throw it away because of the taste, or something else?
Done thank you, enjoyed this show. Expanded my basil and chocolate mint and thyme,
How do you overwinter them?
This is so interesting! Thanks for teaching me this great tip!
Wow thank you so much bro, for sharing your expertise. I may now encourage you to buy fresh and plant them like you do.
Hi Ben, how do you over winter your basil plants in the UK? I have a mini cold frame. Is that enough for UK winter or do they need to be brought indoors? Thank you for the helpful videos.
I tried it after i watched the video. Omg, it really works. I have given away basil to family and show them how to do it. I grew Tai basil from seed and now I am doing the same with them. One thing I have to say. You need to be very patient 😊. I am doing the same with thyme and i have 4 new plants. 👍
Will this work if it starts to bolt? Sorry if it was mentioned.
I didn’t know you could do this with basil…..!❤
Thank you I love your cheery informative videos I've learnt so much❤❤
Brilliant Ben it's wonderful to have this information 😊
great tips as always Ben, my basil grown from seed didn’t do too well this year especially the lemon basil but will remember to do so of these. thank you
I planted some from store bought, was doing well untill the caterpillars ate the leaves!!! Grrr!
can i just put the cutting directly in the soil?
Dear,how can plant Basil seed,plz
Hi ben another good video can you use sharp sand instead of perilit
I cannot thank you enough for all your videos and endless knowledge. Because of you, i have just rented my 1st plot on an allotment. Last year i had a "practice patch" in a communial garden, and this year, along with your videos and online planner, i feel confident and ready to start growing on my own patch. Your obvious joy and enthusiasm for gardening is so contagious, and we all love you for it.
i can never have enough of him
Strange question- Can I ask where you got those tumblers that you’re putting the cuttings in from please? I had a set of them and one broke and I’ve never been able to find a replacement!
Great video. Im starting loads of herbs now from seed
Love your Channel, Love your Rosie! Thank you for all your garden veggie wisdom sharing! I just bought basil once again from the grocery and am going to follow your advise before it dies! Blessings to you and your family!
Thanks for the vid, can I grow it outside in UK? I always assumed was kitchen windowsill only?
Persian basils are delicious.
Curious…What do you do with that abundance of basil?
I quit buying Basil in pots because each time I did, it always came with Thrips in either adult, nymph or egg stage. Because I only grow Basil indoors, I’ve completely eliminated that problem by growing from seed. I collect my own Basil seed each year which germinates 3-4 days.
This man is a mine of really useful information relating to gardening. He also has the knack of making his videos interesting and enjoyable.
Seeds are cheaper.
I learned a lot, thank you. I just tried cutting two pieces of basil and have my fingers crossed that they will grow like yours. Cheers.
Thankee, sai. Most informative.
What do you do if your plant is turning into a tree??? The stem is about half a cm thick and its about 8 inches tall. No other new growth from the soil. Its looking very leggy but the leaves are lovely and green and massive!! 😊