Fleemo wrote:

My basil has gone nuts this season (a good thing) but is now flowering
profusely. Will the taste be affected by flowering, like lettuce?
Can I just cut it way back with some shears and still have quality
basil?

Basil is an annual. Once it finishes blooming, it dies. To delay
this, remove all flower buds before they open. Pernnial herbs such
as thyme, mint, sage, and rosemary survive quite well after
blooming.

I found that basil flowers and flower buds are bitter, not as tasty
as the leaves. On the other hand, the flowers and buds of dill
(another annual) are at least as tasty as the leaves; dill seed is
often used as an herb.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/