FENNEL

Sweet fennel sometimes announces its presence ahead of time.

From around the bend on a mountain road or around the corner on an urban block comes the smell of anise.

When the turn is accomplished, the source is confirmed: a tall cluster of stalks with branches of fern-like leaves and crowned with airy light-yellow snowflakes of blossoms.

Naturalized from Europe long ago, sweet fennel, a perennial herb, is usually from 3 feet to more than 8 feet tall and blooms from May to September.

All parts of it are aromatic, including the stalks, which are bluish-green with a silvery sheen that is easily wiped off with a finger that becomes suddenly fragrant.

Crushing the flowers or leaves or seeds intensifies the scent.

In fact, the early missionaries, it is said, harnessed this property by spreading sweet fennel in the church aisles.

A member of the carrot family, sweet fennel bears the Latin name of Foeniculum vulgare.

Foeniculum means “small hay,” and probably derives from the plant’s scent; vulgare means common.

The leaves, which are sheathed at the base, can be cooked as a vegetable or used in sauces.

Some leaves make up the ingredients of today’s French and Italian cuisine.