MYRRHIS ODORATA

Description

Also called Sweet Cicely, Garden Myrrh, and Spanish Chervil, this uncommon and beautiful British native, has ornamental, much-divided, delicate, fern-like foliage and crowded umbels of small white flowers followed by extremely large, shiny-black, decorative seed-heads which are fluted and slightly curved. The whole plant has a pleasant odour of aniseed. Budding chefs can use it for flavouring stewed fruit such as plums, when it is said that it is possible to halve the amount of sugar required. Its crisp stalks make an excellent substitute for celery after light cooking and the leaves have been eaten either boiled like spinach, in soups, or fresh in salads, whilst the seeds are used as an aniseed flavouring.

Sowing Advice

For best results, sow immediately onto a good soil-based compost. Cover the seeds with fine grit or compost to approximately their own depth. They can be sown at any time, and germination can sometimes be quicker if kept at 15 to 20 degrees C. We sow most seeds in an unheated greenhouse and wait for natural germination, as many seeds have built-in dormancy mechanisms, often waiting for natural spring germination, hence giving them a full season of growth.

Key Facts