African blue basil facts for kids
Quick facts for kids African blue basil |
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| Hybrid parentage | Ocimum kilimandscharicum × Ocimum basilicum |
| Cultivar | 'Dark Opal' |
| Origin | Peter Borchard, Companion Plants, Athens, Ohio, 1983 |
African blue basil is a special kind of basil plant. It's a hybrid, which means it was created by crossing two different types of basil: camphor basil and dark opal basil. Most basil plants only live for one year, but African blue basil is a perennial. This means it can live for several years if cared for properly.
African blue basil plants are unique because they cannot make their own seeds. This means you can only grow new plants from cuttings. A cutting is a small piece of the plant that can grow roots and become a new plant.
Contents
African Blue Basil: A Special Plant
What Makes It Unique?
A Special Scent
African blue basil has a very strong smell, like camphor. This scent comes from its parent plant, Ocimum kilimandscharicum, also known as camphor basil. About 22% of the plant's scent comes from camphor. It also has other important smells, like linalool (55%) and 1,8-cineole (15%). These are common in many basil types.
Purple Leaves and Pretty Flowers
When the leaves of African blue basil are young, they start out purple. As they grow bigger, they turn green, but they still keep their purple veins. This beautiful purple color comes from natural pigments called anthocyanins. These are the same pigments that give blueberries and red cabbage their color.
This basil plant grows many flowers, just like plants that only live for one year. Even though it blooms a lot, it can't make seeds. The flowers are very good at attracting bees and other helpful insects that carry pollen. African blue basil also grows taller than many other types of basil.
Growing and Using African Blue Basil
How It Grows
Since African blue basil is a perennial, it can keep growing year after year in warm climates. In colder places, people often grow it in pots so they can bring it indoors during winter. Remember, you can only grow new plants from cuttings, not from seeds.
Cooking with African Blue Basil
All parts of the African blue basil plant are safe to eat, including the flowers, leaves, and stems. Some people might find its strong camphor smell a bit too much for cooking. However, many find it makes a very tasty pesto with a "rich, mellow flavor." You can also use it to season soups and salads. It tastes especially good with tomatoes, green beans, or chicken.
