Sweet cicely
Myrrhis odorata
Also called Myrrh, Garden myrrh and Anise chervil
Garden plant · Herbs, veg & fruitCook it with rhubarb or gooseberries and you need a third less sugar — that is the reason to grow it, and it is the first thing up in the herb bed in February. It seeds itself hard, so cut the heads off unless you want a colony.
Care at a glance
- Ease
- Easy
- Water
- Every 4 daysWater the ground — water at the base, in the morning, not over the leaves.
- Light
- Part shade
- Feed
- Every 45 days
- Humidity
- Average
- Hardiness
- Very hardy RHS H7, to -25°C
- Size
- 1.2 m tall · 1 m across
- Lifecycle
- Perennial
- Origin
- The mountains of central Europe
Is it safe for pets and people?
No animal-poison authority lists this plant either way.
Nobody has checked this one against a source for us yet, so treat it as unknown rather than safe.
Neither authority names Myrrhis. That is an absence and not a clean bill — and it is an umbellifer, a family that contains both food and some of the deadliest plants in Britain, so never eat one on a guess at the leaf.
Checked against ASPCA and RHS on 2026-09-22. Where a source says nothing, we say nothing.
A guide, not veterinary or medical advice. If a pet or a person has eaten a plant and you are worried, call your vet or doctor now — don’t wait for signs to appear. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
First signs of trouble
- A dozen new plants round the parent each spring, and a deep tap root on every one of them. Cut the seed heads while they are still green if you want to stop it — once they blacken it is too late.Seeding into a colony · disorder
- The whole plant browns and disappears in July. It is a damp-shade plant going dormant early; it will be back in February, which is when it is most useful anyway.Dying back in a dry summer · disorder