Modern cooking is replete with aromatic and flavoring additives that are beneficial to the body. Typically these are spices and seasonings made from plant products. One of these seasonings is fennel, which you definitely need to pay attention to. It is fennel that brings a piquant note to the culinary arts and promotes health. Although, it is worth noting that fennel is not so popular in our country. And we know much better a related plant - dill. However, fennel is such an interesting spice that it’s definitely worth learning more about it!
Chemical composition
Fennel exhibits powerful antioxidant properties. It contains kaempferol glycosides, quercetin, flavonoids, rutin, malic and succinic acids, sugars. Among the phytonutrients, anethole is considered the most important. This substance reduces inflammatory processes in the body, prevents the growth of cancer cells, and protects the liver. The fruits contain fatty (up to 12%) and essential (up to 6%) oils, which give the plant a sweetish-spicy taste and aromatic aroma. A distinctive feature of the herb is its high vitamin C content (up to 90%).
All parts of the plant are suitable for consumption, but its seeds are most valued (345 kcal per 100 g).
Components of plant origin exhibit the following effects: diuretic, mild laxative, antiemetic, antispasmodic, choleretic, carminative, expectorant, lactogonic, blood purifying, sedative.
Contrary to popular belief, dill water is made only from a solution of fennel oil and is in no way related to dill. It is used to combat bloating and colic in children.
Table No. 1 “Nutritional value of fennel seeds”
| Components | Content per 100 grams of product, grams |
| Carbohydrates | 52,3 |
| Alimentary fiber | 39,8 |
| Squirrels | 15,8 |
| Fats | 14,9 |
| Omega-9 | 9,91 |
| Nonessential amino acids | 9,117 |
| Water | 8,81 |
| Ash | 8,22 |
| Essential amino acids | 6,178 |
| Omega-6 | 1,69 |
| Saturated fatty acids | 0,48 |
| Sterols | 0,066 |
Table No. 2 “Chemical composition of fennel seeds”
| Name | Nutrient content per 100 grams of product, milligrams |
| Vitamins | |
| Ascorbic acid (C) | 21,0 |
| Niacin (B3) | 6,05 |
| Pyridoxine (B6) | 0,47 |
| Thiamine (B1) | 0,408 |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0,353 |
| Beta carotene (A) | 0,007 |
| Macronutrients | |
| Potassium | 1694 |
| Calcium | 1196 |
| Phosphorus | 487 |
| Magnesium | 385 |
| Sodium | 88 |
| Microelements | |
| Iron | 18,54 |
| Manganese | 6,533 |
| Zinc | 3,7 |
| Copper | 1,067 |
Fennel is used to make soups, drinks, sauces and salads. This is a natural flavoring agent that improves the smell of marinades and pickles. Fennel is prepared for future use: the roots are dug up, frozen or covered with soil and stored as root vegetables. The leaves are dried and pickled.
Is it possible to mix?
Dill and fennel go well together . When canning, the mixture of flavors will add flavor to the vegetables. The taste of a fresh vegetable salad will only benefit from adding both herbs. To enhance lactation, doctors recommend taking infusions from various herbs for nursing mothers.
If you are taking a medicinal mixture to increase your breast milk supply, the benefits of fennel seed and dill mixture will increase.
Dill and fennel are sources of vitamins and microelements necessary for humans. If these plants are consumed correctly, they will not cause any harm to the body.
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Beneficial features
Fennel relieves stomach upsets, fights respiratory diseases, menstrual cycle disorders, anemia, constipation, gas formation, diarrhea, colic, and eye diseases. The plant contains antacids that neutralize the effects of acid, so it is included in mouth fresheners and toothpastes. In addition, fennel fruits are used in cooking to make pies, puddings, and liqueurs.
Beneficial features:
- Eliminates bloating, increased gas formation, and has a carminative effect (aspartic acid).
- Protects eyes from inflammatory processes, age-related diseases and macular degeneration (vitamin C, arginine, magnesium, cobalt, essential oils). Juice is squeezed out of fennel leaves and instilled. Used to relieve irritation and eye fatigue.
- Has an expectorant effect (anethole and cineole). Used to treat diseases of the respiratory system accompanied by coughing attacks.
- Has a diuretic effect. Thus, fennel helps eliminate toxic substances from the body, eliminates bloating and rheumatism.
- Increases breast milk production in women during lactation.
- Strengthens hair and gives it natural shine.
- Calms the nervous system, improves memory.
- Relieves attacks of renal colic (polymers).
- Prevents the formation of anemia (histidine and iron). These compounds are part of enzymes, blood, participate in redox reactions, hematopoiesis, respiration, immunobiological processes, and create an oxygen supply in the body.
Iron deficiency anemia leads to the development of psychological and neurological disorders, which manifest themselves in changes in taste desires, restless legs syndrome, headaches, and irritability. If treated improperly, the disease causes the following consequences: deformation of the nervous system, decreased immunity, pathology of epithelial tissue, deterioration in performance, enlarged liver, edema of the lower extremities. A decrease in the content of red blood cells in the blood increases the load on the heart, which begins to intensively supply organs and tissues with the missing oxygen. The result is a risk of death.
- Facilitates the digestion of food by stimulating the secretion of gastric and digestive juices, and eliminates bad breath.
Fennel relieves gastrointestinal disorders.
- Relieves pain during menstruation in women, normalizes hormonal levels.
- Treats diarrhea caused by microbial activity. Fennel essential oil contains cineole and anethole. These components have a disinfecting effect on the human body. In addition, the amino acid histidine improves the breakdown of food, easing diarrhea.
- Supports peristaltic movements in the intestines. Thanks to this, the seeds of the plant have a laxative effect on the human body, and the herb is used to combat constipation.
It is believed that fennel energizes a person and gives strength. The product is now served in restaurants in India after dinner as a dessert to freshen the breath.
Fennel seasoning: contraindications for women and men
Fennel is a seasoning that undoubtedly has benefits for the human body. However, under a number of circumstances, it can be harmful from consumption or medical use.
Fennel is contraindicated:
- In case of individual intolerance to the product.
- For food allergies in the acute period, during the compensation period - with caution and under the supervision of a doctor.
- For heart rhythm disturbances and certain diseases of the heart and blood vessels.
- For acute diarrhea.
- With severe arterial hypotension.
Any chronic and acute diseases require careful attention to the formation of the diet. Before including fennel in your diet or using the product to obtain a therapeutic effect, it is important to consult a specialist.
Fennel: culinary uses
So much has been said about the use of this seasoning for medicinal purposes that it is worth paying attention to the use of the spice in cooking. It turns out that not everyone knows why and in what dishes to add fennel. And, by the way, this is a seasoning that can be used in completely different areas of culinary achievements.
Fennel is added to main courses, salads, marinades, dressings and soups. It adds a piquant note to warming and cooling drinks. This spice is interesting in combination with fruits and dried fruits. This component is not superfluous in some types of baked goods. This spice is added to jams, chutneys, marmalades, marshmallows and jams, and salad dressings and sauces will sparkle with new colors. In short, there is no limit to imagination in the direction of using fennel for culinary purposes. And, as a rule, the result pleases with a fresh, spicy note and a subtle peppery bitterness. Fennel combines in an original way with both sweet foods and basic everyday foods. In each type of dish, this seasoning reveals itself in its own way, highlighting the taste and aromatic characteristics of the combination.
Interestingly, the ancient Greeks considered fennel a magical plant and believed that it protected against evil spirits. This is such a multifaceted seasoning - fennel. If there are no contraindications, enjoy your meal and be healthy!
Folk recipes
Expectorant
Method of preparation: pour 30 g of fennel seeds into 200 ml of boiling water, leave for 20 minutes, strain. Drink 100 ml four times a day before meals.
Diuretic
Used to relieve swelling. Preparation principle: 5 g of fennel fruits are brewed in 200 ml of water, left in a warm room for 10 minutes, filtered. Drink 150 ml 3 times a day.
Carminative, expectorant
Creation principle: brew 30 g of fennel in 200 ml of boiling water, place in a water bath for a quarter of an hour. Cool, strain, bring to original volume (add water). The infusion is heated before use. Take 4 times a day, 100 ml (adults) and 15 ml (children).
To eliminate excess gas formation and treat dry cough, fennel oil is used. The product is a colorless liquid with a strong odor (like anise). It is obtained by treating fruits with water steam. Fennel oil has a bitter-camphor taste with sweetish notes. The liquid consists of 60% anethole.
Sedative
The healing decoction is prepared as follows: pour 5 g of fruits into 250 ml of water, cook for 30 minutes over low heat, filter. Take 50 ml (adults) and 10 ml (infants) before meals 4 times a day.
Lactagogue
Fennel tea is a refreshing drink that enhances milk production in nursing women. To prepare it, brew 10 g of seeds in 150 boiling water and leave for 5 minutes. Drink 4 times a day. To achieve a pronounced effect, take regularly in strictly prescribed doses (600-800 ml) throughout the day.
Fennel oil
Effect on the body:
- removes waste and toxins;
- eliminates constipation and diarrhea;
- normalizes the functioning of the digestive tract;
- removes bloating;
- restores the functioning of the liver, kidneys, and spleen after an overdose of alcohol;
- activates the body’s own production of estrogen and the activity of the endocrine glands;
- relieves premenstrual conditions and menopausal symptoms;
- calms the nervous system.
Fennel oil exhibits aphrodisiac properties and has an antifungal effect. Interestingly, after sanitizing the air in the room (2 drops of the product per 5 sq. m.), the number of microbes decreases by 5 times.
The aroma of the oil has a sedative effect on the central nervous system: it relieves complexes, fears, obsessive thoughts, and gives a feeling of harmony, independence, and freedom. Used in folk and traditional medicine, cosmetology internally and externally in the form of compresses, applications, rubbing, massage mixtures.
Fennel oil is used for:
- air aromatization;
- enrichment of cosmetics (tonics, creams, masks, shower gels, scrubs, lotions, shampoos) with useful biologically active substances;
- treatment of influenza, pneumonia, pharyngitis, bronchitis, acute respiratory viral infections, acute respiratory infections (inhalations);
- improving cardiac conduction, lowering blood pressure, relieving arrhythmia;
- stimulation of the gastrointestinal tract;
- dissolving kidney stones;
- relieving nausea, colic, hiccups, gag reflexes.
In cosmetology, fennel oil is used as a powerful antioxidant that has a rejuvenating effect on the dermis. It increases skin elasticity, smoothes wrinkles, and inhibits the aging of body cells. The oil nourishes, tones the dermis, increases its elasticity, especially in the hips, bust, abdomen and eliminates cellulite. The product prevents the appearance of acne and eliminates acne in adolescents.
Lifting mask for face and décolleté
Its purpose is skin tightening. With regular use, fine wrinkles are smoothed out, the contour of the face becomes clearer, the dermis acquires elasticity and firmness, and the double chin “goes away.” The processes of active production of collagen and elastin are launched in skin cells, which maintain its youth and beauty.
Indications for use: age spots, dry skin, facial wrinkles, double chin, yellow and gray dermis, blurred facial contour.
Homemade lifting masks with fennel have smoothing, tightening and rejuvenating effects, so they are suitable for caring for mature, aging dermis.
Contraindications: obesity, open wounds on the surface, age under 30 years, vascular, skin diseases, plastic surgery performed before six months, intolerance to mask components.
Ingredients: white clay (15 g), egg yolk (1 pc), jojoba oil (15 ml), fennel, rose and neroli (1 drop each). Mix all components, apply to cleansed skin, take a horizontal position (to avoid sagging of the dermis), lie down for 30 minutes. Wash off the mask with contrast water. Perform the procedure 2-3 times every 7 days for 1 month.
Anti-cellulite massage oil
Eliminates fatty tubercles and orange peel by accelerating metabolism, increasing blood flow, and normalizing water-salt balance.
Components of the anti-cellulite product: olive oil (50 ml), grapefruit, patchouli, lime, fennel (5 drops each). Mix the resulting composition thoroughly, rub into problem areas 2 times a day during the first week and 1 time during the second. When cellulite resolves, apply oil at least 3 times every 10 days as a preventive measure. If you add an additional ingredient, clay, to this recipe, the product can be used for cosmetic wraps.
Eye cream
Fights the harbingers of old age - wrinkles that appear after 35 years, nourishes the delicate dermis around the eyes, and has a rejuvenating effect. Any baby cream (15 ml) is suitable as the basis of an anti-aging cream, which is preheated in a water bath and add 4 drops of myrrh and fennel oils. The composition is applied to the eyelids 1 hour before bedtime.
Nourishing mask for face and hands
Activates metabolic processes, relieves irritation, improves blood circulation, slows down age-related changes, relieves fatigue, softens and rejuvenates the dermis. To prepare, mix cottage cheese (5 g), quince pulp (1 piece), fennel oil (3 drops), egg yolk (1 piece). The fruit is pureed in a blender, the remaining ingredients are added to the resulting pulp, mixed, and applied to the hands and face for 15 minutes. After a quarter of an hour, rinse with water and moisturize.
Dill water
After birth, the baby’s gastrointestinal tract begins the process of adaptation of the digestive system to the consumption of breast milk or formula. Because of this, almost all children develop intestinal colic within a month, caused by bloating and excessive gas formation. To alleviate the baby's condition, dill water comes to the rescue. It is a solution of fennel oil (0.1%). Absolutely safe for children from birth. Interestingly, the tincture of fennel fruit got its name due to the fact that the herb is popularly called “pharmacy dill.”
Beneficial features:
- relaxes smooth muscle spasms;
- is a diuretic;
- stimulates the production of beneficial microscopic flora;
- removes putrefactive formations;
- reduces pressure on the intestinal walls;
- dilates blood vessels;
- relieves inflammatory processes;
- improves bile secretion, kidney function, digestion;
- has antibacterial properties;
- removes phlegm when coughing;
- increases passage in the bronchi;
- relieves constipation;
- normalizes sleep, calms the nervous system;
- promotes healing of wounds and ulcers;
- relieves pain.
Dill water is sold in pharmacies, but you can make it yourself at home.
Cooking principle:
- Grind dry fennel seeds (5 g) in a blender or coffee grinder and pour into a glass.
- Pour in hot water (250 ml).
- Leave to infuse for 45 minutes, filter. Store no more than a day.
Ready-made dill water is added to baby formula or expressed milk, no more than 5 ml (1 teaspoon) and given to the baby 3 times a day, observing his reaction. If necessary, the dosage is increased to 6 times a day.
For newborn infants from two weeks to a month, it is recommended to drip 15 drops of fennel solution onto the tongue. After normalization of the digestion process, the intake of dill water is canceled. As a rule, by 6 months, intestinal colic ceases to bother the baby, since his body has already adapted to the new life and copes well with “processing” milk.
With bloating, upset bowel movements and loss of appetite, dill water does not always help. In this case, you should consult a doctor.
An analogue of dill water is the drug “Plantex”, made from fennel seed extract. This is a granular herbal remedy with carminative properties. It enhances intestinal motility, increases the secretion of gastric juice, improves the passage of gases, and normalizes digestion. Granules from a Plantex bag are dissolved in warm boiled water (100 ml). The entire volume is divided into 3 equal portions and given to children up to one year old.
Marathon, a story about an English doctor, children's gas and mother's milk
The name of fennel in Greek is “marathon” (μάραθον). We know this word thanks to traditional long-distance running, but few people know that it is also the name of the place where, in ancient times, a grandiose battle took place between the Persians and the Athenians (and where the same messenger came running with the long-awaited news). It is translated as “the valley where the fennel grew.” And the hero Prometheus, when he produced fire at the top of Olympus, brought it to humanity, chilled and dark in every sense, precisely on a fennel stalk - the essential oils of the plant supported even combustion.
A certain Doctor Stephenson went down in the history of British medicine as a real luminary of science, as he masterfully treated diseases of the respiratory organs and kidney diseases with a certain magic remedy, the recipe of which he refused to disclose to competitors for years. Presumably, his medical fame and the kilograms of pure sovereigns and guineas he earned turned pharmacists and doctors against him: in 1739, the English Parliament issued a special order, which obliged the Aesculapian to reveal his secret. To the amazement and chagrin of the medical world, the potion consisted almost entirely of a concentrated fennel infusion. Stephenson must have had a lot of fun: his own fee for selling the recipe amounted to an impressive amount - as much as five thousand pounds sterling!
Nowadays, it is customary to give fennel decoction to children from the very first days of life, when their stomach hurts, and mothers of children drink fennel tea so that their babies have more tasty breast milk.
Growing in open ground
Fennel has a thick, spindle-shaped tap root. The stem is erect, branched. The leaves are pinnately dissected. The plant reaches up to 2 m in height. The fruit is ovoid-oblong with pronounced blunt ribs, elongated at the edges. The petals are broadly ovate, yellow, notched at the apex. The grass is propagated by sowing seeds or dividing the bush.
Requirements for landing
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Fennel ripens quickly, so it can be rooted throughout the warm period of the year. He does not tolerate long daylight hours. To get a harvest, the plant is planted in the ground from April 15 to the end of May and from August 15 to September 15. To obtain planting material for next year, wait until the seeds are completely ripe. They can only be obtained from early spring sowing (late April). Otherwise, fennel is grown as seedlings in pots at home. Among the sprouts that have emerged, the strongest is selected and rooted in open ground. In order for the plant to take root, the beds are covered with film.
The soil
Fennel grows well on loamy, sandy loam soils and black soil. In the wild, it is found in weeds, rocks, foothills and steppes. However, to obtain a high yield, the soil for sowing must be moist, loose and fertile. To do this, humus, sand, sawdust, compost, dolomite flour and ash are added to the soil.
Place
Choose a sunny or slightly shaded place for planting. The optimal temperature for growing fennel is 16-20 degrees above zero. When the indicator decreases to 7 degrees or increases to 24 degrees, growth slows down.
It is recommended to plant the plant near cabbage or cucumbers, since they are also moisture-loving. In addition, fennel essential oils repel aphids, thereby protecting vegetables. The plant should not be planted in close proximity to beans, beans, tomatoes, spinach and peppers.
Planting by seeds
Fennel fruits are oblong seeds of greenish-brown color, measuring 3 mm x 10 mm. When planted in early spring, it blooms in July. The seeds ripen in September. They are collected from umbrellas.
First of all, it is necessary to moisten and feed the soil. For 1 sq.m. future beds add 0.5 kg of ash and a bucket of humus and compost. If the soil is too depleted, additionally add ready-made liquid fertilizers. The seeds are buried 2 cm into the ground, maintaining a distance between rows of 40 cm. The first shoots appear after 3 weeks, since essential oils slow down the penetration of moisture into the kernels, as a result, their growth is inhibited. The seedlings are thinned out. The distance between plants should not be less than 15 cm.
Primary requirements:
- Sufficient hydration. Remember, fennel loves moisture. Without regular watering, vegetable varieties will not produce fleshy heads, and the plant will stop growing and begin to die. The soil should always be moist. In dry weather, fennel is watered every other day, and in the fall, during the rainy season, as needed.
- Removing flower stalks when there is no purpose for collecting seeds.
- Loosening the soil, weeding, mulching. These operations will help maintain moisture in the soil and relative cleanliness in the beds.
- Rolling vegetable varieties. The procedure improves the setting of heads.
- Feeding with chicken manure, organic matter, and ash throughout the season.
For greens, the medicinal variety of fennel is harvested when the base of the root is no more than 1 cm in diameter, without waiting for the crop to flower. The top is cut off, used fresh or dried, frozen, or added to canning. Harvesting of the vegetable variety occurs during the period when the head of cabbage reaches a size of 10 cm. After this, it is consumed immediately or placed for safekeeping in a dark, cool and damp room. In the second case, the head of cabbage is cleared of leaves, the stems are cut, and 10 cm of petioles are left without touching the roots.
Is this the same thing or not?
The upper aerial parts of these fragrant herbs are very similar in appearance. Both types of herbaceous plants belong to the same Apiaceae family and are used in cooking and folk medicine, but they are not the same plant.
Plant similarities
For medicinal purposes, the seeds of dill (Voloshsky) are used; this plant is also called common fennel. The fruits of these medicinal herbs contain essential oils and protein. The aroma of fennel seeds contains subtle notes of anise, unlike its green counterpart.
- Preparations made from fennel and dill seeds are used as a mild expectorant for bronchitis, pneumonia and whooping cough; improve the functioning of the digestive system.
- These herbs are successfully used for treatment in the form of tinctures and decoctions for flatulence and unstable intestinal function in infants.
Why are they confused?
It is possible to confuse plants using only external signs during planting seeds and at a young age; both species grow well in vegetable gardens and garden plots and upon visual inspection they exhibit similar elements:
- Two types of spices are united by one family - Umbelliferae.
- Their feathery green leaves and numerous inflorescences collected in umbrellas look almost the same.
- Mature stems of both species reach a height of 1-2 m.
- Greens are widely used in cooking in the preparation of meat, fish and vegetable dishes.
Read about planting fennel seeds here.
Dill water, which is sold in pharmacies, is prepared using fennel seeds to normalize intestinal function in children.
Otherwise, these herbs have many differences: the crops have different chemical compositions, so their effect on human organs occurs differently.
How are they different in appearance?
With a closer look at the plants, you can easily notice significant differences:
- The central stem of dill is hollow inside and does not exceed 1.2 m in height. While fennel quickly grows to a height of 2 meters and bushes heavily at the base (dill has a bare stem dotted with individual leaves).
- Fennel is a biennial plant, and dill is an annual plant.
- Clear differences are noticeable when comparing seeds: dill has small, flat seeds, while fennel fruits reach sizes up to 10 mm in length.
- They have completely different aroma and taste properties: dill has a specific taste, unlike other herbs; The taste of fennel is sweet with a slight bitterness. The smell leaves no doubt that these are different plants: dill is a fragrant garden herb, and fennel has an exotic aroma of anise and mint with a hint of tarragon.
When grown in the garden, fennel requires more attention and care than dill.
Despite their superficial similarity, dill and fennel are not the same plants. Two different plants, fennel and dill, have different chemical compositions and have different effects on the body.
What is the difference between dill and fennel: ways to distinguish between plants
Novice gardeners confuse these 2 crops of the Celery umbrella family. Therefore, it is worth taking a closer look at what fennel and dill are, what is the difference between them, what are the characteristics of each plant. And also learn to distinguish them from poisonous wild species.
What does the plant look like?
Fennel has a fairly powerful, branched, waxed, tall (up to 2 m) cylindrical stem with a bluish tinge. Stem leaves, like those of dill, are pinnately dissected into linear narrow lobes. The lower leaves are petiolate; in vegetable fennel, they emerge from the head.
Vegetable fennel
Yellow five-petal flowers are collected in umbrellas, which are located at the tops of the stems. Fennel, like dill, is characterized by bisexuality. The plant blooms from July to September. The two-seeded fruit is similar to dill.
Value
Both varieties of herbs are used for food. Vegetable heads of cabbage are used in salads and for preparing first and second courses. They are also valued as a dietary product. Ordinary fennel is used as a spice instead of dill.
Each type is valuable for its therapeutic effect:
- spicy vegetable heads are recommended for kidney and liver diseases;
- they will also help with eye problems;
- in folk medicine, fennel seeds are included in recipes for hypertension and for the treatment of hypochromic anemia;
- advised to a nursing mother to enhance lactation and in cases where the newborn suffers from colic;
- sweet dill is included in herbal preparations that have carminative and choleretic effects;
- the decoction enhances the secretory function of the digestive glands;
- the seeds have a calming effect on the nervous system.
Healing fruits
The plant is a good antispasmodic and also an antiemetic. The essential aroma is used as a fragrance for medicines. Fennel has also found its use in perfumery and cosmetology.
Compound
All parts of the herb are valued, but it is the fruits that have the most medicinal properties. They are characterized by a high content of essential oils, the main of which is anethole.
There are a lot of sugars in the composition, which is why fennel is sweeter than dill. In terms of fatty oil content, both crops under consideration are similar to each other.
As well as for the main amount of useful mineral compounds, vitamins, flavonoids, folic acid.
Description
Externally, dill is very similar to its wildly growing “brother”. The same tall, branched, erect stem with longitudinal ribbed stripes and a waxy coating.
At first glance, the leaves are also similar - sessile or petiolate, divided into lobules. If you don’t look too closely at the flowers, they are also identical – small, five-parted, forming umbrellas.
It is difficult to distinguish between each other and the seeds are greyish-brown in color.
Dill in the garden
Beneficial features
Basically, garden seasoning is used as a spice for pickling, preserving and pickling vegetables. Essential aroma and taste improve the quality of salads and hot dishes. But dill is valued no less than fennel for its healing properties - they have an almost identical beneficial composition.
Among the essential oils of dill, carvone should be highlighted. Fatty oils are represented by glycerides of linoleic, oleic, petroselinic, and palmitic acids. The spicy culture is attracted by its rich vitamin and mineral set.
The fruits are used to make dill water for babies; it helps improve intestinal motility. Decoctions and infusions have a calming and antispasmodic effect, expectorant and vasodilator, diuretic and choleretic.
For colic in the tummy
Dyspepsia in children is treated with dill decoctions. The composition of dill waters is useful for cystitis in adults, relieves flatulence and abdominal pain. Every property inherent in fennel can be attributed to garden dill.
What is the difference between dill and fennel?
The two spice cultures are very similar. But in order to fully understand the question: is fennel a type of dill or not, it is worth considering the differences between them (and they exist).
Differences between cultures
FennelDill
| Develops as a perennial plant, can grow in one place for up to 4 years | herbaceous annual |
| Fennel grows larger in height than dill | |
| The leaf lobes are wider than those of true dill and coarser | Graceful leaves are dissected into narrow, almost needle-like lobes |
| Umbrellas are formed mainly at the tops of stems | Umbrella inflorescences are also present on the branches |
| The strong smell is closer to anise than dill. | Native rich spicy aroma |
| Larger fruit | The seed is smaller than fennel |
| Essential oils in seeds not less than 6% | Less pronounced fruit aroma due to lower ester content - up to 4% |
| Presence of edible heads at the base of the vegetable fennel | The stem does not have characteristic thickenings |
| Powerful, spindle-shaped root, up to 2 cm thick | The rod is thin and poorly developed |
| There are minor differences in chemical composition |
Crops and agricultural technology differ. In many ways, the growing conditions are identical, but a number of differences can be identified.
Distinctive features of agricultural technology
FennelDill
| Already growing on the site and ready to produce greens throughout the growing season | To have fresh greens all season, it will have to be sown every year at several times. |
| Sow when spring frosts have gone | You can sow as soon as the snow melts |
| Each plant needs a lot of space - up to 20 cm after thinning, due to the powerful heads of cabbage, so it needs separate beds | When growing, leave no more than 3 cm between plants. Can be planted between other crops |
| Requires constant care | Unpretentious plant |
| When the stems of the vegetable species begin to thicken, the plant must be hilled | Does not require hilling |
| The harvest is harvested when the heads of cabbage ripen (when they become the size of an apple). These thickenings are cut off at the root | Green twigs are used for food, umbrellas are used for canning and for spices after flowering |
| In the southern regions, it requires covering with mulch for the winter - leaving 5-6 cm of the stem above the ground. In the northern regions, it is recommended to dig it up with a ball of earth and keep it in a greenhouse until spring. | As an annual, it does not need such an event. At the end of the growing season, it is simply removed from the site. |
Knowing all these features, it will now be easy to distinguish fennel from dill. But when preparing a pharmaceutical plant, it is advisable not to confuse it with other wild plants.
Important! There are many similar umbrellas in nature, but most often fennel is confused with hogweed, which, although it has beneficial properties, is quite poisonous.
From a distance, the flowering plant really looks like sweet dill - the same yellow umbrella-baskets. But, taking a closer look, they notice that the inflorescences are flatter and have an irregular shape, and the leaves of the hogweed are solid and wider. The bush itself reaches a considerable size, the stem is stiff and heavily pubescent.
The plant is not just poisonous - contact with it causes severe burns on the body. To avoid such a nuisance, you need to know hogweed by sight. Therefore, it is worth carefully studying the photo of this umbrella plant so as not to confuse pharmaceutical fennel with it.
Poison Umbrella
Considering how one representative of the Celery family can differ from another, you understand how diverse the natural world is (even with the maximum external similarity). Dill and fennel are similar not only in their appearance, but also in their beneficial properties. Although here there are distinctive nuances determined by the chemical composition of each plant.
Important! If replacing one dill with another does not significantly affect the recipe, then confusing fennel with hogweed is a dangerous option that will lead to serious negative consequences.
Source: https://7ogorod.ru/sedobnaya-zelen/fenhel-i-ukrop-v-cem-raznica.html
Where can I get the plant?
Instructions on how to grow
You can grow a green miracle both from seeds and by seedlings. Planting in the garden occurs in mid-spring - April.
Gardeners recommend planting fennel away from other plants: if the root crop does not have enough moisture, it will, with the help of long roots, begin to take it away from its neighbors in the garden.
Fruit harvesting occurs at the end of April - beginning of September. The grains do not ripen evenly. Initially, those in the center are harvested, then the rest of the crop.
Where to buy and how to choose?
You can buy fennel in stores, at pharmacies, or order online. The fruits are usually bright or light green in color. This is a sign of their freshness. In Moscow, the average cost of pharmaceutical dill seeds is 447 rubles/kg, in St. Petersburg – 435 rubles/kg.
