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I heard of a basil plant growing a thick uncuttable base stem when grown hydroponically. In just 6 months. It also grew very tall.

One explanation is the nutrient feed is too high.

Why else might this happen?

But it is an annual herb. Producing wood or whatever that part was comprised of seems out of the range of possibility for an annual.

Some annuals can become perennials in the wild. So a potential exists. My American spikenard has a new thick unbending base every year.

Can an annual, in the wild, grow such a firm stem base and remain an annual?

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  • $\begingroup$ Welcome Gary W. Could you offer some additional details. Where did you hear of this? How do you know it's an annual variety not perennial? Also, please take the tour and read up in the help center about how we work - particularly the How to Ask section. Can you show us what searches you've performed, what you found as per our requirements. $\endgroup$
    – Jiminy Cricket.
    Commented Apr 10 at 4:07
  • $\begingroup$ Too many unknowns about light and conditions to have an idea... Don't even know if the stem was big from age or from growing conditions $\endgroup$
    – bandybabboon
    Commented Apr 10 at 10:37
  • $\begingroup$ I read a dozen or so questions that came up automatically when I typed mine in. None were on this same topic. My question is interesting to me (thus I'd think it is to others) because it raises the question: can annuals have a thick stem at the base? I thought it was plant dogma that annuals always have flexible soft stems. I recently asked the NY botanic garden about it and found out some sunflowers are annuals and have ligneous tissue in the stem. I consequently learned that secondary growth is not the only source of such tissue. $\endgroup$
    – GaryW
    Commented Apr 14 at 2:13
  • $\begingroup$ My question did include that the basil was just six months old. I don't know if it is annual or perennial - my manager at work is the one who has the hydroponic garden. I think her failed attempts to cut the stem originated because she wanted to replant a cut part in her outdoor garden. I can find out about light and how dense the feeding solution was. She grew a few other herbs but the basil was the only one with the thick base. $\endgroup$
    – GaryW
    Commented Apr 14 at 2:20
  • $\begingroup$ I had a winter wild flower id book that stated plants are divided into: herb, perennial, tree or shrub. That prompted my question because herbs are defined as "non-woody." It makes sense that some annuals contain some woody tissue because traits exist across a spectrum. The first angiosperm tree did not just appear out of nowhere, with evolution proceeding over generations. The basil plant referred to in my question had grown taller than the other plants in her collection. $\endgroup$
    – GaryW
    Commented Apr 14 at 2:25

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Where it originated in warm regions, basil is a perennial.

According to Better Homes and Gardens
Most types of culinary basil are native to warm regions of Asia and Africa. They grow as perennial plants in USDA Zones 10–11. In cooler climates where frost occurs, culinary basils are grown as annual plants and don’t survive the winter. However, basil self-seeds if you allow the plants to flower.

Most gardeners plant basil in spring and harvest the crop throughout the summer. However, if you want to extend the harvesting window and grow basil all year round, grow basil indoors and harvest fresh leaves from the plants throughout the winter months. When properly maintained, basil plants usually last about a year indoors, but they can sometimes live up to four years.

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