Daucus

the winning entry herself… Ever since, the wild carrot has been known in England as “Queen Anne’s Lace”, a name it carried with it when it was introduced to the Americas by British immigrants.

According to my grandmother “Queen Anne has hairy legs”, which is a reference to the hairy stems of the plant as opposed to the smooth stems of the hemlocks. Another difference regarding the stems is that the stem of the wild carrot is solid, that of the hemlock is hollow. And also on stems, the hemlock stems display at least a dark purple line running down the length of the stem (sometimes it can be completely purple). Wild carrot stems do not display this discolouring.

The flower of the wild carrot has a purple to black “button” in the centre, which is absent in the hemlock flower. The tiny leaves of the wild carrot flower have a tiny pink dot in them, also absent in the hemlock flowers.

When in doubt, another way to find out is to take some leaves of the plant and crush them between your fingers. If it smells like carrot, it is carrot. If it stinks, it’s hemlock and you must wash your hands immediately and thoroughly.
The wild root is edible, however, the root must be pulled when it is young because the high content of Xylem tissue makes it turn woody and inedible very early on in its life. The root is whitish and when crushed smells of carrot.

Once you have the plant properly identified, you have a wonderful source of natural medicine at your disposal. Dioscorides asserts that the best specimen for medicinal use come from Crete.

Wild Carrot tea is an age-old remedy to draw down delayed menstruation. It also helps in combatting difficulties with urination, dropsy and pleurisy. It sooths the digestive tract and stimulates the uterus. Wild carrot anything is therefore off-limits for pregnant women.

The seeds of the wild carrot are the forerunner of today’s morning after pill. Dried seeds were used to make the uterus contract sufficiently to terminate a possible pregnancy immediately. How effective the seeds were is not knows, but studies have confirmed it is well within the possibilities of the seeds having that effect.

An infusion made from fresh leaves (make sure they smell like carrot!) is very effective in cleansing the urinary tract and the kidneys. It is known that it will diminish the size of already formed kidney stones, thereby enabling easier passage. Wild carrot leaves contain significant amounts of porphyrins, which stimulate the pituitary gland and lead to the release of increased levels of sex hormones. This is probably the reason why wild carrot got its reputation as an aphrodisiac.

Crushed leaves, mixed with honey, make a very potent “salve” to sooth and heal infected wounds.

In ancient folklore, it was said that eating the little black button in the centre of the flower cured epilepsy.