Cicely

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Cicely, also myrrh, anise fern, and sweet chervil, common name for an herb with leaves that smell strongly of anise or licorice, member of the carrot family. The name cicely is also used for a related genus of herbaceous perennials (plants that live at least three years and have nonwoody stems) with fleshy roots, tiny white or yellow flowers, and cylindrical fruit. Both the herb and the genus are also called sweet cicely.

A native of Europe, cicely reaches about 1 m (about 3 ft) in height and has pale green, anise-scented, fernlike leaves that consist of three lance-shaped leaflets. The small, whitish flowers form umbrella-shaped clusters in early spring and late summer. The shiny, ribbed fruit is about 2.5 cm (about 1 in) long and grows in upright clusters.

The cicely herb grows best in moist, shady sites and survives winter temperatures as low as -40° C (-40° F). It does not grow well in tropical or subtropical regions. The leaves, stems, and seed pods can be used to add an anise flavor to salads, teas, soups, and pies, or to sweeten sour fruit, such as rhubarb. In the Middle Ages, sweet cicely was used to stimulate the appetite and treat cold symptoms. The boiled roots were eaten as a protection against the plague.

Among the most common species of the cicely genus is woolly sweet cicely, also called sweet javril and sweet jarvil. It is about 1 m (about 3 ft) tall and has hairy leaves and stems. The fernlike leaves are up to 30 cm (12 in) wide and are divided into irregular sections with deeply toothed edges. The oblong fruit is about 2.5 cm (about 1 in) long and the roots smell of anise. Woolly sweet cicely is native to North America. It is found from Nova Scotia south to Alabama and as far west as Nebraska and Missouri. Smooth sweet cicely, also called anise root, is similar to woolly sweet cicely, but is sometimes hairless. Its leaves are less coarsely divided and irregular, and the fruit is smaller. It is native to North America from Quebec south to Georgia and as far west as Texas.

Scientific classification: Cicely belongs to thefamily Apiaceae (formerly Umbelliferae). The cicely herb is classified as Myrrhis odorata. The cicely genus is Osmorhiza. Woolly sweet cicely is classified as Osmorhiza claytonii, smooth sweet cicely as Osmorhiza longistylis.

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