In article ,
Omelet wrote:

In article ,
Just Another wrote:

You're right about basil being an annual, and yet I've lived in
California and Hawaii, and in both places been able to keep plants
growing for years.

That's with proper pruning and the perfect environment. That does not
count. G

I have managed to keep Basil alive thru the winter for close to 2 years
in a greenhouse with vigilance. It's one of my favorite culinary herbs.

One Hawaii neighbor had a 14-year-old hedge of purple
basil, and kept it trimmed down to around 5 feet (by 20 feet wide).

What genus and species please? I'd be interested in that.

Ah, I wish I could learn all them Latin names.

He
said it started out as a store-bought 4-inch container. Basil plants
would likely live indefinitely in a greenhouse environment, too. As they
age, the leaves are not nearly as tasty and the plants don't yield as
much; but the baby leaves are still delicious, and there's so much more
plant to pick from.

But it's still advisable to keep it from blooming?

I'm not sure; the reason I've kept basils for more than a season in the
past is because I *failed* to pull the naughty bits and stop them from
blooming, and hid my mistake in some obscure corner of the garden.