Fennel varieties: New, tried and tested & resistant

Fennel can be cultivated as bulbous fennel, wild fennel and spice fennel for flowers and seeds. We present the varieties and give an overview of the best fennel varieties.

the garden fennel (Foeniculum vulgare ssp. vulgar) exists in three different varieties: wild fennel or bitter fennel (Foenicum vulgare var. vulgar), Sweet Fennel, also known as Roman Fennel or spice fennel (Foeniculum vulgare var. dulce) is known, and vegetable fennel (Foeniculum vulgare var. azoricum). In the kitchen, the vegetable fennel, which is also called onion fennel or bulbous fennel because of its structure, is usually used as a whole. Wild fennel and herb fennel are used as a bread spice, in desserts, teas and as medicines, for example for digestive problems. In this article we have summarized the best fennel varieties and their properties for you.

Comparison of sweet fennel, wild fennel and spice fennel

vegetable fennel	spice fennel	Wild Fennel
Foeniculum vulgare var. azoricum	Foeniculum vulgare var. dulce	Foeniculum vulgare var. vulgar
use of the tuber	use of the seeds	use of the whole plant
As a vegetable, cooked or raw	Spice, tea, remedy	Spice, tea, remedy

Fennel Varieties: Wild Fennel

The perennial wild fennel is not only a close relative of anise (Pimpinella anisum), Caraway seed (Carum carvi) and dill (Anethum graveolens), but also the archetype of today's garden fennel varieties. It comes from the Mediterranean region to the Near East and was already valued as a spice and medicinal in ancient times. At that time it was mainly used to flavor bread and wine and to treat digestive problems. It is also known as bitter fennel and only forms a very small tuber. The plants, which are up to 150 cm high, are perennial and sprout again every spring. Nowadays, the wild fennel is cultivated for the seeds, which are more aromatic compared to the cultivated fennel and taste almost pungent, similar to liquorice. Bitter fennel is named after the camphor-like and bitter-tasting fenchone contained in the seeds, which has an antibacterial and invigorating effect. The dried, yellow, sweet and spicy fennel flowers can also be used as a herb. They are referred to as "fennel pollen".

spice fennel

At the spice fennel It is a cultivar focused on producing numerous, large, sweet-aromatic seeds. Spice fennel is a fennel without tuber formation, since the plant flowers directly. Because of the taste of the seeds and leaves, the spice fennel is also called sweet fennel. It is used in teas, as a spice for meat, fish and salad and as a remedy, for example for stomach problems. Today it is mainly cultivated in France, as long, warm summers are necessary for the seeds to ripen. For hobby gardeners, growing spice fennel is particularly attractive because the plant is robust and easy to care for. Because of its frost tolerance, it survives the winter well with us. The inflorescences also give off an intense smell and attract numerous insects for pollination. We present the best fennel varieties for growing in your own garden:

• 'dulce': Sweet fennel with strong stems and delicately pinnate, green foliage. The biennial plants, which are up to 200 cm high, develop numerous aromatic fennel seeds in addition to the sweet-tasting leaves.
• 'Finocchio': Biennial green spice fennel with aromatic, sweet leaves and seeds. The variety likes to multiply itself by sowing in the bed.
• 'Magnafena': Vigorous fennel variety with shiny, turquoise-green foliage and very large seeds. The plants reach a height of 80 cm and thus remain rather small and compact.

• 'Purpureum': Bronze fennel with bronze to copper brown leaves. This biennial perennial fennel can grow to a height of 200 cm and propagates by self-seeding if the numerous seeds are not harvested.
• 'rubrum': Bronze fennel with a growth height of 150 - 200 cm and green leaves with a delicate bronze tinge. The variety forms large, fragrant umbels of flowers, which often only form a few seeds.
• 'Smokey': Brown fennel with particularly sweet-tasting leaves. The copper fennel, which is up to 150 cm high, is reliably hardy and perennial.
• 'stone scribe': Sweet fennel, which produces harvestable seeds in the first year if sown early in spring. The plants, which are up to 200 cm high, serve as productive bee pasture for weeks.

Vegetable fennel varieties

The best known is probably the vegetable fennel. This is characterized by its strongly thickened, white-green sprout tubers. Historically, the sweet fennel is the youngest. It was created by crossing different wild fennel varieties. Today it is grown in large parts of the world and can be enjoyed raw in salads, but also steamed, baked or boiled.

The numerous fennel varieties differ mainly in their harvest time and in the categories "bolt resistant" or "non bolt resistant". For the climate in Germany, we recommend only using bolt-resistant varieties. These do not tend to form a flower instead of the thick corm in the first year. Numerous bolt-resistant varieties of sweet fennel are now available for cultivation:

• 'Di Firenze': This old Italian variety forms aromatic, large tubers, but is unfortunately less bolt resistant than today's varieties. Therefore, it is only suitable for autumn cultivation.
• 'Final': The bolt-resistant variety is well suited for early cultivation. The round, firm and dense tubers are of good size, high yield and aromatic flavor.
• ‘fine‘: This extremely bolt-resistant variety convinces with lush, bright white tubers. She can be grown early in the year and has a good taste.
• 'Montebianco': This early to medium-ripening, broad-round bulbous fennel variety for the autumn harvest. 90-110 days elapse between sowing and harvesting.

• 'Orazio F1': Hybrid variety with uniformly sized, thick, rounded tubers. They hardly ever become woody and can be harvested as mini fennel or full-grown sweet fennel.
• 'Perfection': This quite bolt-resistant fennel variety has beautifully formed, white, flat-topped tubers. It is recommended for early cultivation and autumn harvest.
• 'Prelude F1': Hybrid variety from Italy with medium-sized, round, white tubers. The bolt-resistant variety is suitable for planting from May to August.

• 'Romanesco': Early-ripening fennel variety from the area around Rome with large, thick sprout bulbs weighing up to 400 g. The plants reach a height of about 60 cm.
• 'Rondo F1': The bolt-resistant hybrid variety for summer and autumn harvest is characterized by a high yield and an intense taste of the tubers.
• ‘Selma‘: The bolt-resistant variety is fast-growing with large tubers. It is also characterized by its high yield throughout the summer and its fine taste.

After selecting the right fennel varieties, it’s time to sow and plant. More to Cultivation of fennel in your own garden you can read in our special article.