Common name: Fennel
Foeniculum vulgare Mill. APNI* Description: Erect, biennial or annual herb, 1–2.5 m high, strongly liquorice-scented; stems striate, glabrous, glaucous.
Leaves 3–4-pinnate, 30–50 cm long, feathery, repeatedly dissected into numerous thread-like segments, 5–10 cm long.
Compound umbels 7–15 cm diam.; peduncle to 12 cm long; rays 8–30, to 6 cm long; umbellules 5–15 mm diam., 10–30-flowered; pedicels 1–7 mm long. Petals c. 1 mm long, yellow.
Fruit ovoid-oblong, 4–10.5 mm long; mericarps dorsally flattened with 5 prominent equal ribs.
Flowering: September–December
Distribution and occurrence: Weed of disturbed sites and waste land, widespread. Native of Eurasia.
NSW subdivisions: *NC, *CC, *CT, *ST, *CWS
Other Australian states: *Qld *Vic. *Tas. *W.A. *S.A.
Cultivars used as a vegetable, for flavouring and medicines.
Text by J. M. Powell, except for genera with authors listed Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 3 (1992)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data ***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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