The cultivation of basil is worth mentioning, because it is a very promising crop. The aim of this study was to evaluate the development of the Basil cultivation, cultivar Tuscan lettuce leaf and Alfavaca red basilican, submitted to different doses of nitrogen. The first factor was composed of six nitrogen doses and one control (0, 40, 80, 120, 160, 200, 240 kg ha -1 of nitrogen), and the Second was composed of two cultivars (Alfavaca red basilican and Tuscan lettuce leaf) with four replicates. The basil Alfavaca red basilican cultivar overcame the cultivar Tuscan lettuce leaf in the plant height and diameter of the stem. In the leaf and shoot dry matter variables, the doses that resulted in the greatest increase of dry matter were 128 and 125.62 kg ha -1 of nitrogen for the cultivar Tuscan of lettuce leaf. Both Alfavaca red basilican and Tuscan lettuce leaf were influenced by nitrogen fertilization and the dose of 120 kg ha -1 of nitrogen has the highest potential in the developmental parameters.