Fothergill's RHS Basil Aroma 2 F1 Seeds

Details:

• Botanical Name: Ocimum basilicum 'Aroma 2 F1', an elite, highly uniform F1 hybrid selection of the classic Genovese sweet basil type.
• Plant Class: Half Hardy Annual, establishing with exceptional speed and vigour to provide continuous, heavy flushes of foliage throughout the summer.
• Advanced Disease & Bolt Resistance: Bred with advanced modern genetics to feature an exceptional natural resistance to Fusarium Wilt, a soil-borne disease that frequently strikes older varieties. It is also highly resistant to bolting (running to seed prematurely), ensuring a vastly extended harvesting window.
• Gourmet Italian Large Leaves: Bears an abundance of large, glossy, and beautifully cupped deep green leaves. They are packed with high concentrations of essential oils, delivering an incredibly rich, sweet, and authentic clove-aniseed aroma.
• The Ultimate Culinary Essential: The absolute gold standard herb for classic Italian cuisine; the tender, aromatic leaves are perfect for tearing raw over vine-ripened tomatoes, layering into fresh mozzarella caprese salads, or blending into rich, smooth homemade pestos.
• Compact Bushy Framework: Naturally forms a neat, sturdy, and robust upright bush framework reaching a highly controlled mature height of 30–45cm (12–18in). Its tidy habit makes it an elite choice for indoor kitchen windowsills, patio herb pots, and warm garden borders.
• Optimal Position: Thrives at its absolute best when positioned in Full Sun in a warm, sheltered location out of chilly drafts, planted in rich, fertile, and free-draining compost.

Care Instructions:

• Sowing Position: Start seeds indoors from March to June for a prolific summer crop. For a continuous, year-round supply of fresh leaves, small batches can be sown indoors on a bright windowsill from January through to December. Sow seeds thinly onto the surface of moist, good-quality compost in pots or trays, and cover with a very fine 0.5cm layer of compost or vermiculite. Maintain a warm indoor temperature of 15–20°C for rapid germination.
• Planting Out & Spacing: Once seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots. Basil is highly sensitive to the cold; grow on in warm, bright conditions and only plant out into their final patio containers or sunny garden beds in late May or June, once all danger of frost has safely passed. Space plants roughly 20–25cm apart.
• The Golden Watering Rule: Basil strongly dislikes wet feet and cold nights. Always water your plants early in the morning rather than late in the evening, and water directly onto the soil around the base rather than splashing the leaves. This allows the compost to drain and the foliage to stay dry, dramatically reducing the risk of damping off or fungal issues.
• Harvesting & Pinching Tip: Never strip individual leaves from the bottom of the plant. Instead, harvest by pinching out the top growing tips just above a pair of leaves. This simple technique stops the plant from flowering and stimulates the lower nodes into pushing out fresh, rapid, and bushy new growth, doubling your harvest.