Fennel
(Foeniculum officinale, All.), a biennial or perennial herb,
generally considered a native of southern Europe, though common on all
Mediterranean shores. The old Latin name Foeniculum is derived from
foenum or hay. It has spread with civilization, especially where
Italians have colonized, and may be found growing wild in many parts of
the world, upon dry soils near the sea coast and upon river banks.
It s
England and the shelly formation of Bermuda. In this latter community I
have seen it thriving upon cliffs where there seemed to be only a pinch
of soil, and where the rock was so dry and porous that it would crumble
to coarse dust when crushed in the hand. The plant was cultivated by the
ancient Romans for its aromatic fruits and succulent, edible shoots.
Whether cultivated in northern Europe at that time is not certain, but
it is frequently mentioned in Anglo-Saxon cookery prior to the Norman
conquest. Charlemagne ordered its culture upon the imperial farms. At
present it is most popular in Italy, and France. In America it is in
most demand among French and Italians. Like many other plants, fennel
has had a highly interesting career from a medical point of view. But it
no longer plays even a "small part" in the drama. Hints as to its
history may be found on page 54.
Description.--Common garden or long, sweet fennel is distinguished
from its wild or better relative (F. vulgare) by having much stouter,
taller (5 to 6 feet) tubular and larger stems, less divided, more
glaucous leaves. But a still more striking difference is seen in the
leaf stalks which form a curved sheath around the stem even as far up as
the base of the leaf above. Then, too, the green flowers are borne on
more sturdy pedicels in the broader umbels, lastly the seeds are double
the size of the wild fennel seeds, 1/4 or 1/2 inch long. They are convex
on one side, flat on the other, and are marked by five yellowish ribs.
Though a French writer says the seed degenerates "promptly," and
recommends the use of fresh seed annually, it will not be wise to throw
away any where it is not wanted to germinate, unless it is over four
years old, as seed as old even as that is said to be satisfactory for
planting.
Cultivation.--In usual garden practice fennel is propagated by seeds,
and is grown as an annual instead of as a biennial or a perennial. The
plants will flourish in almost any well-drained soil, but seem to prefer
light loams of a limy nature. It is not particular as to exposure. The
seed may be sown in nursery beds or where the plants are to remain. In
the beds, the drills may be 6 inches apart, and not more than 1-3 inch
deep, or the seed may be scattered broadcast. An ounce will be enough
for a bed 10 feet square. When the plants are about 3 inches tall they
should be transplanted 15 or 18 inches asunder in rows 2 to 2-1/2 feet
apart. Some growers sow in late summer and in autumn so as to have early
crops the following season; they also make several successional sowings
at intervals of one or two weeks, in order to supply the demands of
their customers for fresh fennel stalks from midsummer to December or
even later. The plants will grow more or less in very cold, that is, not
actually freezing weather.
If sown in place, the rows should be the suggested 2 to 2-1/2 feet
apart, and the plants thinned several times until the required distance
is reached. Thinnings may be used for culinary purposes. For family use
half an ounce of seed, if fairly fresh, will produce an ample supply of
plants, and for several years, either from the established roots or by
reseeding. Unless seed is needed for household or sowing purposes, the
flower stems should be cut as soon as they appear.
Uses.--Fennel is considered indispensable in French and Italian
cookery. The young plants and the tender leaves are often used for
garnishes and to add flavor to salads. They are also minced and added to
sauces usually served with puddings. The tender stems and the leaves are
employed in soups and fish sauces, though more frequently they are eaten
raw as a salad with or without dressing. The famous "Carosella" of
Naples consists of the stems cut when the plant is about to bloom.
These stems are considered a great delicacy served raw with the leaf
stalks still around them. Oil, vinegar and pepper are eaten with them.
By sowing at intervals of a week or 10 days Italian gardeners manage to
have a supply almost all the year.
The seeds are used in cookery, confectionery and for flavoring liquors.
Oil of fennel, a pale yellow liquid, with a sweetish aromatic odor and
flavor, is distilled with water. It is used in perfumery and for
scenting soaps. A pound of oil is the usual yield of 500 pounds of the
plant.
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Chervil
(Scandix Cerefolium, Linn.), a southern Europe annual, with stems about 18 inches tall and bearing few divided leaves composed of oval, much-cut leaflets. The small white flowers, borne in umbels, are followed by long, pointed, black seeds with a co... Chervil Or Beaked Parsley
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(Anethum graveolens, Linn.), a hardy annual, native of the Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, smaller than common fennel, which it somewhat resembles both in appearance and in the flavor of the green parts, which are, however, less agreeable. ... Division
Division of the clumps of such herbs as mint is often practiced, a sharp spade or a lawn edger being used to cut the clump into pieces about 6 inches square. The squares are then placed in new quarters and packed firmly in place with soil. This meth... Dock
The term Dock is botanically a noun of multitude, meaning originally a bundle of hemp, and corresponding to a similar word signifying a flock. It became in early times applied to a wide-spread tribe of broad-leaved wayside weeds. They all belong to ... Double Cropping
When desired, herbs may be used as secondary crops to follow such early vegetables as early cabbage and peas; or, if likely to be needed still earlier, after radishes, transplanted lettuce and onions grown from sets. These primary crops, having reac... Drying And Storing
When only a small quantity of an herb is to be dried, the old plan of hanging loose bunches from the ceiling of a warm, dry attic or a kitchen will answer. Better, perhaps, is the use of trays covered with clean, stout manilla paper upon which thin ... Elder
'Arn,' or the common Elder, says Gerard, groweth everywhere; and it is planted about cony burrows, for the shadow of the conies. Formerly it was much [165] cultivated near our English cottages, because supposed to afford protection against witches. ... Elecampane
Elecampane, writes William Coles, is one of the plants whereof England may boast as much as any, for there grows none better in the world than in England, let apothecaries and druggists say what they will. It is a tall, stout, downy plant, from thre... Eyebright
Found in abundance in summer time on our heaths, and on mountains near the sea, this delicate little plant, the Euphrasia officinalis, has been famous from earliest times for restoring and preserving the eyesight. The Greeks named the herb originall... Fennel
We all know the pleasant taste of Fennel sauce when eaten with boiled mackerel. This culinary condiment is made with Sweet Fennel, cultivated in our kitchen gardens, and which is a variety of the wild Fennel growing commonly in England as the Finkel... Fennel
(Foeniculum officinale, All.), a biennial or perennial herb, generally considered a native of southern Europe, though common on all Mediterranean shores. The old Latin name Foeniculum is derived from foenum or hay. It has spread with civilization, e... Fennel Flower
(Nigella sativa, Linn.), an Asiatic annual, belonging to the Ranunculaceae, grown to a limited extent in southern Europe, but scarcely known in America. Among the Romans it was esteemed in cookery, hence one of its common names, Roman coriander. The... Ferns
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The Feverfew is one of the wild Chamomiles (Pyrethrum Parthenium), or Matricaria, so called because especially useful for motherhood. Its botanical names come from the Latin febrifugus, putting fever to flight, and parthenos, a virgin. The herb is ... Figs
In the name of the Prophet 'Figs' was the pompous utterance ascribed to Dr. Johnson, whose solemn magniloquent style was simulated as Eastern cant applied to common business in Rejected Addresses, by the clever humorists, Horace and James Smith, 18... Finocchio
or =Florence fennel= (F. dulce, D. C.), deserves special mention here. It appears to be a native of Italy, a distinct dwarf annual, very thick-set herb. The stem joints are so close together and their bases so swelled as to suggest malformation. Eve... Flag (common)
Our English water Flags are true whigs of the old school, and get their generic name because hanging out their banners respectively of dark blue and yellow. Each is also called Iris, as resembling the rainbow in beauty of colour. The land Flag (I... Flax (linseed)
The common Flax plant, from which we get our Linseed, is of great antiquity, dating from the twenty-third century before Christ, and having been cultivated in all countries down to the present time. But it is exhausting to the soil in England, and t... Foxglove
The purple Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) which every one knows and admires for its long graceful spikes of elegant bell-shaped brilliant blossoms seen in our woods and hedges, is also called the Thimble Flower, or the Finger Flower, from the resembl... Fumitory
The common Fumitory (Fumaria officinalis) is a small grey-green plant, bearing well known little flowers, rose coloured, and tipped with purple, whilst standing erect in every cornfield, vineyard, or such-like manured place throughout Great Britain.... Garlic Leek And Onion
Seeming at first sight out of place among the lilies of the field, yet Garlic, the Leek, and the Onion are true members of that noble order, and may be correctly classified together with the favoured tribe, Clothed more grandly than Solomon in all h... Gooseberry
The Gooseberry (Ribes grossularia) gets its name from kruesbar, which signifies a cross, in allusion to the triple spine of the fruit or berry, which is commonly cruciform. This is a relic of its first floral days, preserved like the apron of the bl... Goosefoot
Among Curative Simples, the Goosefoot, or Chenopod order of British plants, contributes two useful herbs, the Chenopodium bonus Henricus (Good King Henry), and the Chenopodium vulvaria (Stinking Goosefoot). This tribe derives its distinctive titl... Goosegrass
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A passing word should certainly be given to the Goutweed, or, Goatweed, among Herbal Simples. It is, though but little regarded, nevertheless, a common and troublesome garden weed, of the Umbelliferous tribe, and thought to possess certain curative ... Grapes (see Also Vine)
Grapes, the luscious and refreshing fruit of the Vine, possess certain medicinal properties and virtues which give them a proper place among Herbal Simples. The name Vine comes from viere, to twist, being applied with reference to the twining habits... Grasses
Our abundant English grasses furnish nutritious herbage and farinaceous seeds, whilst their stems and leaves prove useful for textile purposes. Furthermore, some few of them possess distinctive medicinal virtues, with mucilaginous roots, and may be ... Groundsel
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The Hawthorn, or Whitethorn, is so welcome year by year as a harbinger of Summer, by showing its wealth of sweet-scented, milk-white blossoms, in our English hedgerows, that everyone rejoices when the Mayflower comes into bloom. Its brilliant haws, ... Hemlock And Henbane
The Spotted Hemlock (Conium maculatum), and the Sickly-smelling Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger), are plants of common wild growth throughout England, especially the former, and are well known to everyone familiar with our Herbal Simples. But each is so ... Herb Relationships
Those readers who delight to delve among pedigrees, genealogies and family connections, may perhaps be a little disappointed to learn that, in spite of the odorous nature of the herbs, there are none whose history reveals a skeleton in the closet. T... Herbs As Garnishes
As garnishes several of the culinary herbs are especially valuable. This is particularly true of parsley, which is probably more widely used than any other plant, its only close rivals being watercress and lettuce, which, however, are generally infe... History
It seems probable that many of the flavoring herbs now in use were similarly employed before the erection of the pyramids and also that many then popular no longer appear in modern lists of esculents. Of course, this statement is based largely upon ... Hoarhound
or =horehound= (Marrubium vulgare, Linn.), a perennial plant of the natural order Labiatae, formerly widely esteemed in cookery and medicine, but now almost out of use except for making candy which some people still eat in the belief that it relieve... Honey
Being essentially of floral origin, and a vegetable product endowed with curative properties, Honey may be fairly ranked among Herbal Simples. Indeed, it is the nectar of flowers, partaking closely of their flavours and odours, whilst varying in tas... Hop
The Hop (Humulus lupulus) belongs to the Nettle tribe (Cannabineoe) of plants, and grows wild in our English hedges and copses; but then it bears only male flowers. When cultivated it produces the female catkins, or strobiles which are so well known... Horehound (white And Black)
The herb Horehound occurs of two sorts, white and black, in our hedge-rows, and on the sides of banks, each getting its generic name, which was originally Harehune, from hara, hoary, and hune, honey; or, possibly, the name Horehound may be a corrup... Horse Radish (_radix_ A Root)
The Horse Radish of our gardens is a cultivated cruciferous plant of which the fresh root is eaten, when scraped, as a condiment to correct the richness of our national roast beef. This plant grows wild in many parts of the country, particularly abo... House Leek (crassulaceoe)
The House Leek (Sempervivum tectorum), or never dying flower of our cottage roofs, which is commonly known also as Stone-crop, grows plentifully on walls and the tops of small buildings throughout Great Britain, in all country districts. It is dist... Hyssop
The cultivated Hyssop, now of frequent occurrence in the herb-bed, and a favourite plant there because of its fragrance, belongs to the labiate order, and possesses cordial qualities which give it rank as a Simple. It has pleasantly odorous striped ... Hyssop
(Hyssopus officinalis, Linn.), a perennial evergreen undershrub of the Labiatae, native of the Mediterranean region. Though well known in ancient times, this plant is probably not the one known as hyssop in Biblical writings. According to the Standa... Implements
When herbs are grown upon a commercial scale the implements needed will be the same as for general trucking--plows, harrows, weeder, etc.--to fit the soil for the hand tools. Much labor can be saved by using hand-wheel drills, cultivators, weeders a... Ivy (ground)
This common, and very familiar little herb, with its small Ivy-like aromatic leaves, and its striking whorls of dark blue blossoms conspicuous in early spring time, comes into flower pretty punctually about the third or fourth of April, however late... Ivy Common (_araliaceoe_)
The clergyman of fiction in the sixth chapter of Dickens' memorable Pickwick, sings certain verses which he styles indifferent (the only verse, by the way, to be found in all that great writer's stories), and which relate to the Ivy, beginning thus:... John's Wort
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The Juniper shrub (Arkenthos of the ancients), which is widely distributed about the world, grows not uncommonly in England as a stiff evergreen conifer on heathy ground, and bears bluish purple berries. These have a sweet, juicy, and, presently, bi...