Garden Fresh Basil

For many, many years I used nothing but dried basil. But I discovered in recent years how easy basil is to grow. We've been growing it outdoors for some time now. It needs little maintenance and really not a lot of water - I am terrible about neglecting the garden, but it seems to grow fine just on the rain water it gets. And it seems to do well in a shady spot in the yard, so even without a lot of sunlight it grows good. I snip off a few leaves when I need them. New leaves soon grown after and when I'm making a pizza or bruschetta or some pasta and want some fresh basil, it's right there.

Of course, you can also grow it in your home, but that doesn't seem to work so great for me. Like I said - I forget to water. I also have only one window in my kitchen and it faces north against another home, so it's not a great source of sunlight. But I may give it another try in the fall/winter and so how long I can keep it alive. :)



What do you use fresh basil for? Where do you grow yours?