PlantFiles: Lemon Basil
Ocimum basilicum 'Mrs. Burns'

I prefer Mrs. Burns to Sweet Dani for both fragrance and taste; however, it is slightly more difficult to germinate and does not seem to be as vigorous a grower here in the high desert. I have grown it only in "full desert sun", however, and it may benefit from afternoon shade (as so many "full sun" plants do here in the desert). I like it so much, though, that while I will continue to grow Sweet Dani for "every day use," I will grow Mrs. Burns for tea and aromatherapy. The leaves are smaller and more delicate than Sweet Dani, and the plants more compact and bushy.

New Mexico heirloom.

Lemon basil taste with sweet, tangy flavor. Very bright green, 2-21/2" long leaves with white blooms. Heirloom.

By far the best variety of lemon basil I've found is one called "Mrs. Burns'". Wonderful fragrance, even when drooping and dying, left in the garden in the winter. Tasty and soothing as a component of an herb tea mixture as well as flavorful for cooking.

Small-leaves and a wonderful citrus fragrance.Delicious in tea, vinegar, jelly, and with seafood. To harvest, remove growth whenever four sets of true leaves can be left on the plant. This encourages bushier growth and increased yield. For best foliage flavor, cut before flowering. Leaf flavor changes after flowers open. After cutting, wash and pat leaves dry. Use immediately or store in perforated plastic bags in the refrigerator. When drying the leaves, harvest early in the day but after dew has dried.