Basil or Ocimum basilicum is the Unusual Edible for July 2016
Now you might be thinking; ‘not much unusual about basil dude’ .
But you’d be wrong, Basil has an fascinating history of use dating back 5,000 years.  Its always been everyone’s favorite spice, but did you know the ancient Egyptians put it in the mouth of the dead to protect the traveling spirit?  Did you know the East Indians put it in the mouth of the dying to insure they reached God?   Did you know it was found on the original cross of Jesus growing in the wood?
Perhaps it was these beliefs and Boccaccio’s Decameron that inspired John Keats to pen his famous poem ‘Isabella, Or the Pot of Basil’:
“It tells the tale of a young woman whose family intend to marry her to “some high noble and his olive trees”, but who falls for Lorenzo, one of her brothers’ employees. When the brothers learn of this they murder Lorenzo and bury his body. His ghost informs Isabella in a dream. She exhumes the body and buries the head in a pot of basil which she tends obsessively, while pining away” (wikipedia).

You don’t have to grow your Basil on the Holy Cross or in a pot filled with the head of your dead lover, but next time you do grow some basil take some time to breathe in the rich and unusual history of this deeply spiritual herb!

1gallon pots of Basil $5.00
4″ pots of Basil 2 for $2.99
…in the month of July.