Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Lemon Basil (Ocimum × africanum 'Mrs. Burns')cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Mrs. Burns Lemon Basil.

More about lemon basil

About Lemon Basil

Ocimum × africanum 'Mrs. Burns' · also called Mrs. Burns Lemon Basil · herb

Lemon basil is a citrus-scented hybrid basil whose leaves carry a bright lemon aroma from high citral content, prized in Thai and Southeast Asian cooking. 'Mrs. Burns' is a vigorous heirloom strain with larger leaves and strong fragrance. Grow it as a tender warm-season annual in full sun, pinching often to delay its quick flowering.

Cold limit: USDA 10-11 (grown as a warm-season annual elsewhere) · RHS H1c (18-30°C)

Watch for — Cold sensitivity: Leaves blacken in cold below roughly 10°C. Keep it warm and bring indoors before the first frost.

What lemon basil's hardiness rating actually means

Lemon Basil is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1c means: Warm-temperate — can summer outdoors but must come in well before the first frost. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10-11 (grown as a warm-season annual elsewhere) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 5 °C (and never frost). Lemon Basil has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for lemon basil as it gets too cold:

Below about about 5 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can lemon basil go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 5 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when lemon basil can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1c figure above.

Lemon Basil hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is lemon basil cold hardy?

Lemon Basil is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Lemon Basil can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10-11 (grown as a warm-season annual elsewhere)); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature lemon basil can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 5 °C (and never frost). Lemon Basil has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

What hardiness zone is lemon basil?

Lemon Basil is rated USDA 10-11 (grown as a warm-season annual elsewhere) and RHS H1c — Warm-temperate — can summer outdoors but must come in well before the first frost.

Can lemon basil survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 5 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to lemon basil below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 5 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.