Sweet Fennel Foeniculum vulgare dulce
LATIN NAME: FOENICULUM VULGARE
COMMON NAME: Sweet Fennel, Fennel
The sweet fennel is one of the most fragrant and most useful of the kitchen herbs, and its feathery, anise-scented leaves and its sweet, swollen bases have made it a treasure of the gardens and the kitchens of the world. It grows as an upright, aromatic, herbaceous perennial of the carrot family, reaching up to two metres or more, with upright, hollow, branching stems bearing finely divided, feathery, bright-green leaves, which give the sweet scent of the anise, and, in the summer, large, flat, compound umbels of many small, yellow flowers, followed by the small, oval, ridged, brown seeds, which are also fragrant. It is a species of the flowering herb, native to the warm regions of the Mediterranean and the nearby lands, while it is grown for its fragrant leaves, its seeds and its sweet, swollen bases, and it is known as the sweet fennel.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The sweet fennel has a real and distinguished place in research. It has been studied in the chemistry of the essential oils and the food science, since the leaves and the seeds of the sweet fennel yield a fragrant oil that has been prized in the kitchen and the perfumery for a long time, and the researchers have examined the plant, its oil and its constituents, while the value of the fennel oil has drawn attention in the international food and botanical press, and the study of the fragrant herbs has been of continuing interest across the world. The plant has also been studied in the horticulture and the plant breeding, since the fennel is one of the most important of the kitchen herbs, and the researchers and the breeders have examined its many forms, its breeding and its cultivation, while the feathery, anise-scented leaves and the sweet, swollen bases have drawn attention in the international horticultural press. The species has also been studied in botany and ecology, since it is a native of the warm regions of the Mediterranean, and its relationships, its distribution and its role in the wild have been examined, while the large, flat, compound umbels of the yellow flowers have been of interest to the botanists and the bees alike. For a herb of such fragrant value, the sweet fennel has a rich and distinguished record of research.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
To grow the Sweet Fennel from seed, ecologically, the sweet fennel is a generous plant of the garden. Its large, flat, compound umbels of the small, yellow flowers feed the bees and the many beneficial insects of the summer, and its small, oval, ridged seeds feed the birds, while its tall, feathery, leafy growth gives a fine cover and a shelter to the small creatures. Its economic value is real: the sweet fennel is prized for its fragrant leaves, its seeds and its sweet, swollen bases, and its value has drawn attention in the international food and horticultural press, while the fragrant plant has been used in the cooking of the world, and the herb is a beloved friend of the garden and the kitchen. To raise the sweet fennel, sow the seeds into pots of moist, free-draining compost in a sunny, open spot, keep them lightly watered, and grow the little herbs on in the sun.
sow the seeds into pots of moist, free-draining compost in a sunny, open spot, keep the young fennel lightly watered, and grow the little herbs on in the sun.
LATIN NAME: Foeniculum vulgare
COMMON NAME: Fennel, Sweet Fennel
The fennel is a generous and fragrant herb of the Mediterranean shores, and its feathery leaves, its golden heads of bloom and its aromatic seeds have been a treasured plant of the kitchen and the herb garden for thousands of years. It grows as a hardy, perennial herb of the carrot family, reaching up to two metres, with tall, upright, hollow stems bearing fine, feathery, thread-like, aromatic leaves and, through the summer, the large, flat, umbrella-shaped heads of many small, golden-yellow flowers, followed by the small, oval, ribbed, aromatic fruits, the fennel seeds, which carry the sweet, anise-like flavour. It is indigenous to the shores of the Mediterranean, but it has become widely naturalised in the many parts of the world, especially on the dry soils near the sea coast and on the riverbanks, while it is a beloved herb of the kitchen garden.
The fennel belongs to the carrot family, Apiaceae, and it is a flowering plant species, a hardy, perennial herb with the yellow flowers and the feathery leaves. It is indigenous to the shores of the Mediterranean, but it has become widely naturalised in the many parts of the world, especially on the dry soils near the sea coast and on the riverbanks, while it is known as the fennel or the sweet fennel, prized for its aromatic leaves and its seeds.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The fennel has a genuine and distinguished place in both chemical and culinary research. It has been studied in the chemistry of the natural products, since the seeds and the leaves carry the sweet, anise-like flavour, and researchers have examined the essential oil of the plant, its many compounds and their uses, while the aromatic seeds of the fennel have been a treasured flavouring of the kitchen and the liqueur for a very long time, and the chemistry of the fennel has drawn attention in the international food and flavour press as a fragrant herb of the Mediterranean. The plant has also been studied in the nutritional science, since the seeds, the leaves and the swollen bulb of the fennel are all valued as a food, and researchers have examined their composition and their value, while the use of the fennel in the cooking and the herbal teas has been examined. The species has also been studied in agriculture and the herb science, since it is a hardy and generous herb of the garden, and researchers have examined its cultivation, its many forms and its management, while the naturalisation of the plant in the many parts of the world has also been examined. For a herb of such fragrance and such history, the fennel has a rich and distinguished record of research.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
Ecologically, the fennel is a generous plant of the dry coasts and the riverbanks. Its golden heads of bloom feed the bees, the hoverflies and the insects of the summer, and its feathery foliage gives cover, while it is a bright presence in the fields and the waysides of the Mediterranean and beyond.
Its economic value is real and historic. The aromatic seeds, the leaves and the swollen bulb of the fennel are all treasured foods, and the seeds have been a valued flavouring of the kitchen and the liqueur for a very long time, while the chemistry of the fennel has drawn attention in the international food and flavour press as a fragrant herb of the Mediterranean. For a grower, the fennel is an easy and generous herb, and for a gardener it brings feathery, aromatic foliage and golden heads of bloom. The seeds are simple and forgiving — scatter them on the surface of moist, free-draining soil in a sunny spot, press them in lightly, keep them gently watered, and theyll show signs of life within a couple of weeks, growing on into a tall, fragrant plant of the herb garden.
Uses: Culinary/Medicinal/Beverage/Aromatic Chopped leaves are excellent with oily fish, such as mackerel, eel and salmon, for they improve digestibility. Also in soups, salads and stews. Fennel tea is given to infants for its calming and anti-flatulent effects.