Ferula assa-foetida

Botanical Description

Ferula assa-foetida is a monocarpic, perennial plant growing from a tap-root; it produces a single, robust stem about 10cm in diameter at the base and around 100cm tall[ 74 Title Flora of the USSR. Publication Author Komarov. V. L. Website http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org Publisher Israel Program for Scientific Translation Year 1968 ISBN - Description An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials. An important medicinal and culinary herb, the gum-resin from the roots is harvested from the wild and exported in quantity from Iran to many different countries and is also cultivated in several countries. This species is the main commercial source of asafoetida, though there are several other species that are also used[ 2238 Title Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Activity of Extracts of Ferula heuffelii Griseb. ex Heuff. and Its Metabolites Publication Chemistry and Biodiversity, Vol. 12 (2015) 1585-1594 Author Pavlovic I. et al Publisher Year 2015 ISBN Description ].