That's an awesome amount of seeds! I would plant two to a pot in case one doesn't germinate. I use a 4 inch pot for my seeds. Fill the pot with potting soil, put the two seeds a ways apart on top of the soil. Press them lightly into the soil, just enough to cover them. Water them. My basil grows fine in a bright eastern window. No lights needed. The warmer your room the better. Don't water too often because when they sprout they will be little and not need very much water. When they start to look droopy water them. Good luck!

Seriously, you do not need that many basil plants, unless you're like the basil-eating version of a panda and that's all you eat.

You know you can harvest off the same plant for a long time just by pinching it back - and use the pinchings for your culinary desires, right?

Thanks for the tips zackey.

Zen, i would say that i eat about 3 to four cups of basil a day, every 4 to 5 days to help my ibs. So i guess i am a basil eating panda lol.

I guess i will just have to experiment and see what works best.

Anyone else with light suggestions i am not going to grow seeds for transplantation, but want to grow the cinnamon basil seeds to maturity indoors.

Can anyone recommend a good light setup?
would a t5 light do the job?

Thanks.

T5 will do the job, but they'll grow 10 times faster under a high intensity discharge lamp. Get a 600 watt metal halide and you'll be eating the best basil ever, in large quantities.
For seed starting, buy a plug tray and a no drip tray, put the plug tray inside the no drip tray, fill up the plug with a good soil mixture and put one or two seeds per plug.water the top of the soil with a spray bottle and pour about 2 glasses of water in each no drip tray if the soil in the plugs is dry, or 1 glass if moist.

When starting seeds, it is good practice to water the surface with a spray bottle and the rest from the bottom using no drip trays. Seeds are fragile and need not be disturbed as they emerge. Bottom watering also encourages young plants to grow roots as they need to reach down for water. I keep up this practice up until transplanting.

Khaled

I have the Hydrofarm Jump Start light system. Actually, I have 2 of them. They are the 2 foot bulbs.
Growing basil indoors is easy! As stated above, gently tap the seeds into the soil
I tend to place saran wrap lightly over top of the soil to keep in moisture, but just until the seeds germinate. Then it needs to come off right away. From that point on, keep the seedlings moist, but not wet. Wet soil can contribute to damping off, which kills the plant.

For your light: you'll want the bulb to be no more than a few inches above the plants, moving it up gradually as they grow. This will keep them more robust and less spindly. (the Jump Start makes that easy, since it's already on a frame with a pulley system)

Once the plants get a few sets of 'true' leaves, I'll pinch them back a little. This encourages a bushy growth instead of tall and lanky.
Harvesting for eating helps the plant get bushier as well.

Good luck!!

Basil will grow just fine under T8s or T5s, either one. However given the number of plants you are growing, maybe a HID system would be economically feasible. Just make sure you have proper venting and wiring to support the lights and the fans they will require.

You won't get such a system for $70 however. HID systems are a LOT more expensive than that.

Also, here is a DIY pulley system:
Fixtures from Home Despot or Menard's or about any place like that are a lot more economical - as low as $15 each, sometimes less. Just make sure they are T8 fixtures and not T12 - most of the cheapest fixtures these days are T12.

The more bulbs over the plants the better. A single dual-bulb T8 fixture is survival-mode - minimum for growth, IMO, would be TWO dual-bulb T8 fixtures for a total of 4 bulbs over the plants. Remember light drops off at the ends and edges so keep the plants centered.

T5s with 54W bulbs will cast more light - about 60% more than a 32W T8. But they also run a lot hotter. Don't forget the need for a fan or two to help regulate temp under the lights.

Also make sure to put 6500k daylight spectrum bulbs in the fixtures, not the cool or warm bulbs.

It is my understanding that those Hydrofarm setups may not take standard size bulbs. You might want to check that.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pulley system to raise and lower fluorescent strip lights

This post was edited by zensojourner on Mon, Dec 1, 14 at 22:21

Rotate the plants as some might get more light in certain positions than others.