How do you recognise Dill (Anethum graveolens)?

Leaf

Xavier MERIC, Tela Botanica · CC BY-SA 2.0

Dill

Anethum graveolens L.

Family: Apiaceae

40 cm to 1.2 m tall

Vegetable gardens, waste ground, track verges

Flowering: June – August

Full sun

-5°C

❓ How do you recognise this plant?

Its broad yellow umbels are much prized by beneficial garden insects, especially hoverflies, which keep aphids in check. Dill has very fine, thread-like foliage, with a characteristic aromatic smell; rely first on the visual criterion of the foliage rather than on the smell alone.

🍃 Leaves

Leaves very finely cut into threads, glaucous, with a characteristic smell

🌸 Flowers

Small yellow flowers in broad flat umbels

🍎 Fruits

Flat, oval, aromatic achenes

🪵 Bark

Upright, slender, ridged herbaceous stem.

🗺️ Distribution

Native to south-west Asia and the Mediterranean basin; widely grown in Europe.

🐝 Value for pollinators

Broad yellow umbels very attractive to bees, hoverflies and beneficial garden wasps.

✂️ Horticultural uses

Vegetable garden, herb garden; leaves and seeds used in cooking (pickles, fish), also attracts beneficial insects useful in the garden.

⚠️ Possible toxicity

Non-toxic; common aromatic and culinary herb.

⚠️ Look-alike species

Dill

Anethum graveolens

Fennel

Foeniculum vulgare

Dill has very fine, thread-like foliage, with a characteristic aromatic smell; rely first on the visual criterion of the foliage rather than on the smell alone.

🌿 Other Apiaceae to discover

Anthriscus cerefolium

ℹ️ Educational profile — do not use it to judge whether a plant is edible or safe.

🌱 This database is constantly evolving — species and information are added and corrected regularly. Spotted a mistake? Report it below.