Celery plant

Celery (Apium graveolens L) is a plant from the apiaceae family. It is an important aromatic plant grown mostly for its fresh herbs as salad crop in different parts of the world. The plant develops a fibrous root system which is situated in the top 200 mm of soil. Leaves are pinnately compound with a characteristic smell when crushed.

The parts that are used in this plant include seeds, leaves, and essential oils. Among the phytochemical compounds of celery, one can mention carbohydrates, phenols such as flavonoids, alkaloids, and steroids.

Celery has a long fibrous stalk tapering into leaves. Depending on location and cultivar, either its stalks, leaves or hypocotyl are edible and used as a vegetable, whereas its seeds are used for spicing and for medicinal purposes. High quality celery consists of stalks which are well formed, have thick petioles, are compact, have minimal petiole twisting, and have a light green and fresh appearance.

The celery seasoning has a distinctive, but pleasant aroma. Celery plant parts can be used for flavoring foods such as stalks, leaves, oleoresins, and seeds. The seeds have also been used in traditional systems of medicine in the Middle East since ancient times.

However, the use of celery seed oil has come about with the development of the processed food industry, as the oil is widely used as food flavourer in the USA and Europe.
Celery plant