Fennel grooved. Fennel is widely cultivated, both in its native range and elsewhere, for its edible, strongly flavored leaves and fruits. Its aniseed flavor comes from anethole, an aromatic compound also found in anise and star anise, and its taste and aroma are similar to theirs, though usually not as strong. Florence fennel ("Foeniculum vulgare" Azoricum Group; syn. "F. vulgare" var. "azoricum") is a cultivar group with inflated leaf bases which form a bulb-like structure. It is of cultivated origin, and has a mild anise-like flavor, but is sweeter and more aromatic. Florence fennel plants are smaller than the wild type.
Fennel Greek name for fennel is marathon () or "marathos" (), and the place of the famous battle of Marathon literally means a plain with fennel. The word is first attested in Mycenaean Linear B form as ". As Old English ", fennel is one of the nine plants invoked in the pagan Anglo-Saxon "Nine Herbs Charm", recorded in the 10th century. In the 15th century, Portuguese settlers on Madeira noticed the abundance of wild fennel, and used the Portuguese word "funcho" (fennel) and the suffix "" to form the name of a new town, Funchal. Longfellow's 1842 poem "The Goblet