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Nigella sativa
Also called Black caraway, Black onion seed, Roman Coriander, Fennel Flower, Nigella, Nutmeg Flower, Common Fennel Flower
Black cumin is an annual herb grown mainly for its aromatic black seeds, which are used as a spice. Sow in full sun in well-drained soil once the weather has warmed.
Nigella sativa (common names, black caraway, black cumin, nigella, charnushka, or kalonji) is an annual flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to western Asia (the Levant, Cyprus, Turkey, Iran and Iraq), and eastern Europe (Bulgaria and Romania). It is used as a spice in various food preparations.
It is naturalised over parts of Europe, North Africa, and east to Myanmar.
Oils are 32% to 40% of the total composition of N. sativa seeds. N. sativa oil contains linoleic acid, oleic acid, palmitic acid, and trans-anethole, and other minor constituents, such as nigellicine, nigellidine, nigellimine, and nigellimine N-oxide. Aromatics include thymoquinone, dihydrothymoquinone, p-cymene, carvacrol, α-thujene, thymol, α-pinene, β-pinene and trans-anethole. Protein and various alkaloids are present in the seeds.
The seeds of N. sativa are used as a spice in many cuisines. In Palestine, the seeds are ground to make bitter qizha paste.
Wild fennel-flower · Love in a mist · Spanish fennel · Devil-in-a-bush
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Nigella sativa by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
