FENNEL 



309 



as to sheath part of the stem and even the base of the leaf above 

 it. Flowers green, in broader umbels than those of the Wild 

 Fennel, and with stouter and stiffer rays ; seeds at least twice as 

 long as those of the wild kind, flat on one side and convex on the 

 other, traversed by five thick yellowish ribs, which occupy almost 

 the entire surface of the skin. Their germinating power lasts for 

 four years. 



CULTURE. The seed is sown in drills during summer, but 

 generally it is sown in autumn, in order to have the crop come in 

 during the following spring. It is chiefly used raw as a side dish ; 

 the seeds are also used in the manufacture of liqueurs. 



This is the famous " Carosella" so extensively used in Naples, 

 and scarcely known in any other place ; the plant is used while in 

 the act of running to bloom ; the stems, fresh and tender, are 

 broken and served up raw, still enclosed in the expanded leaf- 

 stalks. They are esteemed a great delicacy, and by means of 

 successional sowings the Italian gardeners are able to send it to 

 market almost all the year round. 



Finocchio, or Florence Fennel (Fceniculum dulce, D.C.). 

 Native of Italy. Annual. A very distinct, low-growing, and 

 thick-set plant, with a very short 

 stem, which has the joints very 

 close together towards the base. 

 Leaves large, very finely cut, and 

 light green ; leaf-stalks very broad, 

 of a whitish green hue, overlap- 

 ping one another at the base of 

 the stem, the whole forming a 



Finocchio, or Florence Fennel 

 ( natural size). 



kind of head or enlargement 



varying in size from that of a 



hen's egg to that of the fist, firm, 



white, and sweet inside. The 



greatest height of the plant, even 



when run to seed, does not exceed 



from 2 to about 2} ft. The 



flower umbels are large, with thick 



rays, which have a mild, sweet 



flavour. Seeds oblong, very broad in proportion to their length, 



flat on one side and convex on the other, with five prominent 



ribs, in the intervals between which the gray colour of the seed 



is well shown. Their germinating power lasts for four years. 



CULTURE AND USES. The seed is usually sown in spring for 

 a summer crop, and towards the end of summer for a late autumn 

 crop, in warm countries. It is sown in rows 16 to 20 in. apart. 

 All the attention required is to thin out the seedlings so as to have 

 them 5 or 6 in. apart, and to water the plants as often and as 



