Hi everyone, do you grow Basil? [View all]

I have an above garden and everything is gone now except the Basil. I tried years ago to do the ice cube method of saving fresh leaves. So-so results. I dry the leaves all summer for further use.

I now have a great crop of Genovese Basil...the real Italian stuff. The plants look great but I wonder how long to keep them before I dry a big batch. I'm in MA. We're in the 50's (PM) and 60',s (AM now). Time to pick and dry? I'd save some in a jar in the sunlight but the crop needs to be tended to. Is it time to pull the crop and dry the leaves or should I wait a little longer?

I'll miss my wonderful tomato, cuke, onion salads with every meal. Not the same with dry.
I can however, add some oil to a Pyrex cup with a couple of teaspoons of dry leaves and zap the mixture in the microwave for a few seconds and let cool.. Not the same but better than the stuff you buy in a jar.