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Note: Germination instructions are not on seed packets, follow the instructions below for starting seed.
Plant basil seed outdoors after danger of frost is past or start indoors 4 to 6 weeks earlier. Plant sweet basil in rows 2 feet apart, spacing seeds 1/2 inch apart in the row. Cover sweet basil seed with 1/8 inch of fine soil, well pressed down. Keep soil moist until plants start to grow.
When basil plants are 3 to 6 inches tall, thin or transplant 1 foot apart in the row.
Mediterranean and Indochinese cuisines frequently use basil, the former frequently combining it with tomato. Basil is one of the main ingredients in pesto — a green Italian oil-and-herb sauce from the city of Genoa, its other two main ingredients being olive oil and pine nuts.
Basil is sometimes used with fresh fruit and in fruit jams and sauces — in particular with strawberries, but also raspberries or dark-colored plums.
When soaked in water the seeds of several basil varieties become gelatinous, and are used in Asian drinks and desserts such as falooda or sherbet. They are used for their medicinal properties in Ayurveda, the traditional medicinal system of India.