Caraway
(Carum carvi L., Umbelliferae)
Also Called: Caraway Seed.
Description: Caraway is a biennial and grows to a height
of up to 2 feet with a spread of 12 inches.
It has a thick, tapering root like that of a parsnip.
The leaves resemble those of carrots but tend to droop more.
The flowers, in umbellifer clusters, are white tinged with pink and appear
in mid summer.
The oval seeds are pointed at each end and are very dark brown.
It takes two years for caraway to mature and bear flowers.
The stems of the delicate flowers produce seed cases, each containing two
seeds.
Biennial plant forming, in the first year, a basal rosette of elongated 2-3-pinnate
leaves.
In the second year a branched stem 20-100 cm (8-40in) high bears a few leaves
and umbels of small white flowers.
Fruit 3-5mm (0-1 -0 2in) long, oblong; ripening July-October according to
habitat.
Part Used: Ripe fruits.
Habitat,and Collection: In meadows and moist pastures throughout
Europe, preferring an altitude of 800-2000m (2,600-6,500ft).
Scattered throughout Britain but rather rare; naturalised in waste places.
The brown fruits from wild plants may be collected by cutting the ripe umbels
and leaving until fully mature.
Only the cultivated fruit is available commercially.
Constituents and Action: Abundant volatile oil that stimulates
the secretion of digestive juices.
It has a marked action in preventing the formation of excessive intestinal
wind and in the treatment of diarrhoea.
Use caraway to ease stomach cramping, flatulence, diverticulitis, menstrual
pain and labour pains.
It also stimulates the flow of breast milk.
In combination with other herbs, it eases a cough and sooths sore throats
and laryngitis (use as a gargle).
Prepare the seed as a tincture or infusion for medicinal use.
Usage: Caraway is taken by chewing the fruits or mixing
a knife-pointful of powdered drug in water, for sluggish digestion, lack of
appetite, for intestinal wind or pains.
It may also be taken as a tisane (infuse a teaspoonful of crushed fruits with
0.5 litre (1 pt) of water and allow to stand), or as a Spirit of Caraway.
Culinary use: The leaves may be used in salads and soups,
the seeds in baked goods, dumplings, cream cheese and meat dishes such as
goulash and pork casserole.
The roots can be boiled as a vegetable and served with a white sauce.
Cultivation: A slender and straggly plant, caraway has delicate clusters of white flowers and small feathery leaves.
It is most effective when grown in a large clump.
The plant is cultivated from seed, sown in rows 30-40 cm (12-16in) apart in spring.
It is harvested in July of the second year by cutting the entire plant and leaving in sheaves to ripen.
Yield: 7-20kg (15-441b) per are (120 sq yd).
Seedlings do not transplant well, so sow in the garden in spring or autumn.
Work the soil deeply, as caraway is deep-rooted.
Germination is slow.
It thrives in all but the most humid warm regions and does best from fall-sown seeds.
The plants should be thinned so that they are about 6 inches apart.
It needs well-drained soil and plenty of sun for the best flavour.
Harvesting: Cut the young leaves when they are required.
When the seed turns light brown, cut the whole plant off at ground level.
Preserve seeds by drying.
