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Dill

Hand painted illustration of Dill plant
This image of Dill comes from De historia stirpium commentarii insigne, a book produced by Leonhart Fuchs in 1542 and one of the most-celebrated herbals of the sixteenth century. Each of its more than five hundred woodcut illustrations was hand colored. This book is available in the John R. Martin Rare Book Room in Hardin Library for the Health Sciences.

Dill (Anethum graveolens)

Anethum graveolens, the culinary and medicinal herb known as Dill, is native to the Middle East, South Asia, Europe, Iran, and Turkey (Talebi, Malchi, Abedi, & Jahanfar, 2020). First recommended medicinally more than two thousand years ago, Dill has been used to treat gastrointestinal problems, such as vomiting, as well as menstrual problems, neonatal colic, and hypertriglyceridemia (Nadiroğlu & Behçet, 2018).

Historical Use

Image of text from The Herball by John Gerard, which is summarized below.

This excerpt on the uses of Dill comes from the 1633 edition of John Gerard’s The Herball, available in the John R. Martin Rare Book Room in Hardin Library for the Health Sciences. 

According to the 1633 edition of The Herball by John Gerard, first published in 1579, Dill was boiled in oil and used to aid digestion, promote sleep, and mitigate pain. Gerard also compiles entries from ancient Greek and Roman sources to note that Dill has been used to aid in lactation, treat colic, and to aid in the healing of ulcers.

Latest Research

References

Nadiroğlu, M., & Behçet, L. (2018). Traditional food uses of wild plants among the Karlıova (Bingöl-Turkey). International Journal of Nature and Life Sciences, 2(2), 57-71.

Talebi, F., Malchi, F., Abedi, P., & Jahanfar, S. (2020). Effect of dill (Anethum graveolens Linn) seed on the duration of labor: A systematic review. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 41, 101251. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2020.101251