---
title: "hey all! i just recently and semi-spontaneously bought a sweet basil…"
description: "hey all! i just recently and semi-spontaneously bought a sweet basil plant from the grocery store for a recipe i was making. to prevent waste i planted it in a…"
url: "https://getplanta.com/community/x8_aVt91R1-MU6xd79uMKQ/xDLcKULRAJol7Sexeib9bE"
community: "Edible Gardening"
author: "pothead"
published: "2025-01-25T20:36:40.500383Z"
language: "en"
image: "https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/pjjLUe8QEXVz6SowqwNl9JOsQ6Fg11XUteZM6FH0Q5E/bu-4x-BPRnGu9Z-nOtR9pQ.webp?size=large"
---

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# hey all! i just recently and semi-spontaneously bought a sweet basil…

_Posted by pothead on 2025-01-25_

hey all! i just recently and semi-spontaneously bought a sweet basil plant from the grocery store for a recipe i was making. to prevent waste i planted it in a pot to try to keep. i always have issues with keeping grocery store plants alive, despite the fact that i water them immediately and pot them in a large enough terracotta pot with a drainage hole.

are they engineered to die or am i just especially unlucky? been unsuccessful with grocery store rosemary live plants before too. any tips would be appreciated, am definitely a plant newbie!

the photo is from when i potted her yesterday and the plant has already begun to wilt slightly this morning. the plant itself is very large and top heavy but the root system was in a very compacted plastic nursery pot (at time of purchase) so it’s really only 2 inches x 2 inches x 3 inches. i have not fertilized yet because i only have house plant fertilizer and didn’t know if this was okay to use on edible plants. i’ve been keeping her inside because it’s very cold outside where i live.

let me know if i can provide any further information. thanks!

![Attachment 1 of 1](https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/pjjLUe8QEXVz6SowqwNl9JOsQ6Fg11XUteZM6FH0Q5E/bu-4x-BPRnGu9Z-nOtR9pQ.webp?size=large)

## 3 comments

### Sunny commented on 2025-01-26

Give it lots of light. A grow light running 12 hours a day will help it 8 hours in bright filtered sunlight if it was inside the store when you bought it.

Fertilize with 50 percent diluted fertilizer about once a month in winter if it’s growing.

Trim it often to keep it bushy and putting out new growth.

#### pothead replied on 2025-01-27

thank you!

### Kaylene commented on 2025-02-21

It needs sunlight. Keep the soil moist

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