Parsley

PARSLEY (Petroselinum sativum/crispum - Umbelliferae) Parsley is a hardy biennial herb which is native to the eastern Mediterranean. It is thought to have originated in Sardinia, but records show that seeds were imported to Britain from Sardinia in 1548; the plant had already been introduced to northern Europe by the Romans. There are several varieties of the herb. The curly leaved or moss-curled is the one most familiar in Britain as a garnish. The plain- or flat-leaved, continental parsley has heavily divided leaves, but they are not so curly; this is the plant which can be confused with another, Aethusa cynapium or fool's parsley, which is poisonous. Less familiar is the Neapolitan parsley from southern Italy which has thick stalks, eaten in Italy like celery (and, in fact, its French name is 'persil aux jeuilles de cileri'). All parsleys have carrot-shaped roots which can be eaten, but the Hamburg parsley (P. fusiformis) has been developed for its roots rather than its leaves. The common parsleys have dark green leaves, pale yellow-green flowers in umbels, followed by fruit seeds. The name petroselinum comes from the Greek for rock celery, referring to the natural habitat of the plant. Interestingly, selinum is thought to be the same as selinon, the Greek name for celery; the Romans called parsley 'apium', also the botanical name for celery; and French fool's parsley is called ache des chiens, ache also once a name for wild celery. Celery also belongs to the Umbelliferae family, and possibly there have been confusions over the years. The Ancient Egyptians used parsley, as did the Greeks, who crowned victorious soldiers with wreaths of it. Hercules did this after killing the Nemean lion, and thereafter victors in the Nemean and Isthmian games would do the same. They believed that parsley had grown from the blood of a hero, Archemorus, and Homer tells of a victory won by charioteers whose horses had renewed vigour after eating parsley. Parsley grew on Circe's lawn in the Odyssey. Pliny said that no sauce or salad should be without parsley, as did Galen, and both Pliny and Dioscorides thought of it as a diuretic and emmenagogue. Apicius sang its praises too. The Byzantines used it as a diuretic and made a strong infusion to help kidney stones. Charlemagne ordered that it be cultivated in the imperial gardens as a vegetable, and it was eaten at every meal. It also found a place in monastic gardens at this time. More recently, in the nineteenth century research was done on the emmenagogic properties of a constituent of the oil, apiol, by Professor Galligo, and doctors de Poggeschi and Marrotte. These were later confirmed by Dr Leclerc, proving to be truly efficaceous in treating cases of menstrual problems, particularly pain.

Lovage-, Levisticum officinale, is a perennial herb that looks like parsley and is in the parsley, or Apiaceae, family, like anise, dill, caraway, cumin, and fennel. Lovage is native to mountainous areas of southern Europe and Asia Minor. It is sometimes called sea parsley. Lovage (Levisticum officinale) is a plant, the leaves and seeds or fruit of which are used to flavor food, especially in South European cuisine. It is a tall (3 to 9 ft) perennial that vaguely resembles its cousin celery in appearance and in flavor. Lovage also sometimes gets referred to as smallage, but this is more properly used for celery. Herb (Levisticum officinale) of the parsley family, native to southern Europe. It is cultivated for its stalks and foliage, which are used for tea, as a vegetable, and to flavour foods. Its rhizomes are used as a carminative, and the seeds are used for flavouring desserts. Oil obtained from the flowers is used in perfumery. The French call lovage céleri bâtard, "false celery," because of its strong resemblance to that plant. Lovage has been used since Greek and Roman times for everything from a seasoning, to a curative for maladies ranging from indigestion to freckles, to a love potion. It grows up to 7 feet high and has large, dark green, celerylike leaves. The flavor of the pale stalks is that of very strong celery. The leaves, seeds and stalks can be used (in small amounts because of their potent flavor) in salads, stews and other dishes such as fowl and game. The stalks can be cooked as a vegetable. Dried lovage leaves and chopped or powdered stalks can be found in natural food stores and gourmet markets. The seeds are commonly called celery seed. Lovage is also called smallage and smellage. lovage, tall perennial herb (Levisticum officinale) of the family Umbelliferae (parsley family), native to the mountains of S Europe and cultivated elsewhere. Its aromatic fruits are used in soups and as a flavoring for confectionery and for some liqueurs. An aromatic oil extracted from the roots has been used medicinally and also for flavoring. The edible leaves are usually used like celery. Lovage is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Apiales, family Umbelliferae.