Growing basil

Space individual plants 12 to 18 inches apart.
Before planting, add some general purpose fertilizer and some compost to the soil. Regular fertilizing every couple of weeks will enhance production (though I never get around to doing that in my garden and I still have more basil than I need).
Basil does best with evenly moist soil.
Here at WILLS FARM, I have found that basil plants do better with a little protection from sun during the hottest part of the day. Planting basil between tomato plants works well, or I provide a light covering for them, especially on the hottest days.
Harvesting: As your basil plants grow, pinch off the central stem when they are about 6 weeks old, and prune back each stem when it has more than 8 sets of leaves. (Cut it back to the first or second set of leaves, harvesting the rest.) If you keep your plants well pinched and pruned, you should be able to harvest half a cup of fresh leaves every week during the growing season. The flavor is diminished after the plants start blooming. NOTE: In my garden, the variety ‘Everleaf Emerald Towers’ has never bloomed! The only downside to that variety is that it has smaller leaves than the standard culinary varieties.
PLEASE NOTE: The plants on my farm table have NOT been hardened off. They are straight from the greenhouse.
You can do one of the following:
1. Expose them gradually to outdoor conditions over a week
-OR (as I do)-
2. Plant them immediately and give them protection from excess sun, wind, and rain for a week or two.

Everleaf Emerald Towers

A robust, Genovese basil that has been bred to flower up to 8 weeks later than standard varieties. Everleaf is a fast-growing, tidy, well-branched columnar plant with delicious, robust flavor. Great for container or in-ground growing. You’ll have continuous harvests of fresh leaves without the worry of the plant blooming and turning the foliage bitter. Resistant to downy mildew and Fusarium. (Territorial Seed)
Reviews: Sheena on Aug 19, 2021 — “I trialed 10 types of basil in my garden, as of August 19th, they all have flowered except this variety. It makes an excellent pesto and is great fresh in dishes. If you can only grow one, let it be this one.”
Ralph Zenier on Oct 13, 2020 — “This plant performed very well without flowering and was very pest free in Portland, OR. Was one of our real winners this season.

Amethyst Improved

Genovese-type purple basil. Large 2–3" long, turned-down leaves. This stunning basil is nearly black in color. Purple flowers and red leaves make an attractive garnish. Ht. 16-20”. Edible Flowers: Use the flowers in any recipe that calls for basil, or to garnish drinks, salads, soups, pasta, and desserts. Flavor is of intense basil. (Johnny’s Selected Seed)

Prospera® Italian Large Leaf DMR (ILL2)

Fast-growing with large leaves. Downy mildew and Fusarium resistant.
Plants produce high yields of 4" long leaves. Highly uniform plants have a sweet aroma with notes of anise. Suitable for field and greenhouse production. Very similar to Nufar but with downy mildew resistance.
NOTE: The breeder's pre-commercial variety reference code is (ILL2) ‘Italian Large-Leaf 2'; you might see this code referenced in university trial reports or other resources. Ht. 24–30". (Johnny’s Selected Seed)

Mammolo

A classic Italian Genovese basil with a tidy, compact habit. A superb container variety, Mammolo has been bred to have an exceptionally high leaf to stem ratio and a compact growth habit. The short internodes mean that plants are super bushy, free of undesirable leggy stems and a rangy habit. Leaves are large with a classic Italian basil aroma and flavor, without the minty smell and flavor that some experience with Italian basils. This variety is respected by large-scale growers in Italy, who need a uniform, vigorous basil with gold standard flavor to please the discerning local palate for basil. A market grower’s favorite and a must-have for those growing in pots. (Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds)