Fetching Fennel!

One of our oldest cultivated plants much valued by the Romans and another favourite in our garden.

"So gladiators fierce and rude: mingled it with their daily food. And he who battled and subdued: a wreath of fennel wore" (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow).

Roman warriors took fennel to keep in good health, while Roman ladies ate it to prevent obesity! Every part of the plant, from seed to root is edible. It was one of the nine herbs held sacred by the Anglo-Saxons for its power against evil.