Common name: Fennel, Sweet fennel, Florence fennel, Finocchio •
Hindi: मोटी सौंफ Moti saunf •Manipuri: হোপ Hop • Tamil: Sompu •
Malayalam: Preumjirakam • Telugu: Peddajilakarra • Kannada: Dodda sompu •
Bengali: মৌৰী Mauri • Sanskrit: Misreya, Madhurika
Botanical name: Foeniculum vulgare
Family: Apiaceae (Carrot family)
Geographical distribution
The plant is cultivated throughout the
country as a spice.
Introduction: Fennel is a highly aromatic biennial herb, erect,
shining green, and grows to 2.5 m tall, with hollow stems. The leaves grow up
to 40 cm long; they are finely dissected, with the ultimate segments
filament-like, about 0.5 mm wide. The leaves are similar to those of dill, yet
slightly thinner in comparison. The flowers are produced in terminal compound
umbels (umbrella like clusters arising from the same point on the stem) 5–15 cm
wide, each umbel section with 20–50 tiny yellow flowers on short stalks. The fruit
is a dry seed from 4–10 mm long, half as wide or less, and grooved. This fruit
is what the plant is better known for, and is usually mistakenly called seed.
Fennel is used in Indian cooking. It is an essential ingredient while making
biryani, the delicious aromatic rice preparation.
Chemical composition
Seeds contain an essential oil, d-piene,
camphene, d-L-phellandrene. The fruit also contains a fixed oil, protein,
organic acids and flavonoids.
Therapeutic uses
The leaves are diuretic, digestive, appetizing,
lactogogue, stimulant and aromatic. They are useful in cough, flatulence, colic
and thirst. The seed is sweet, laxative, aphrodisiac, stomachic, stimulant,
aromatic, lactogogue and diuretic. The oil from the seed is an anthelmintic.
Folk medicinal uses
In dysentery either a decoction of seeds
is given or a powder of the seed and ginger fried in ghee. The oil from the
seed is usually given in doses of 0.6 ml. against hookworms.
Preparations
Satapuspadi-churna, satapuspadya-ghrita,
satapushp-arka, abhayarista and panchasakhar-churna.
Flowers and Fruits :
January-March
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