Basil plant in sunlight

Basil does best in warm environments that receive six to eight hours of sunlight every day. Plant your basil in an east-facing part of the garden, or an east-facing window, if indoors, to avoid the scorching midday sun beating down on your basil.

There is a difference in sunlight requirements between young and mature basil plants. This is one reason to plant in pots or containers, so that you can easily move the plants around to accommodate sunlight needs as your basil plants mature.

Young basil plants can get too much sun, while mature plants don’t require shade and love the sun all day long. Seedlings are less tolerant and need partial sun until they get past the seedling stage. Full-sun conditions may lead to leaf scorch on seedlings, which causes discoloration and a droopy effect—especially along the edges of the leaves. Anything less than full sun for mature basil plants has the same effect, without the discoloration.

Another technique for optimizing sunlight for your basil plants as they mature is to plant them in a spot where you can control the sunlight and shade with awnings, for example, or some other shade device.

How do you ensure that your basil plants get the right amount of sunlight? Do you have tips for getting your basil planted in the right spot for proper amounts of sun? Please tell us how you handle sunlight for your basil.