How to Grow Sweet Cicely
Myrrhis odorata
Sweet Cicely is a shade-tolerant perennial herb with soft fern-like leaves that taste of aniseed. Produces white umbel flowers from May to June followed by large ribbed seeds. All parts are edible — leaves, seeds, and roots. Self-seeds readily and thrives in woodland gardens, shady borders, and permaculture plantings. Requires minimal care once established.
Yearly Lifecycle
Care Essentials
Sweet Cicely rarely needs feeding. A light mulch of compost in early spring provides sufficient nutrition. On very poor soils, apply a handful of balanced granular fertiliser as new growth emerges. Avoid overfeeding which produces lush but flavourless foliage.
Watch For
- Slugs on young spring growth — use beer traps or organic slug pellets in damp conditions
- Powdery mildew in late summer if too dry — ensure adequate moisture
- Excessive self-seeding — remove seed heads before they ripen if spreading is unwanted
Track your Sweet Cicely care schedule — pruning, feeding, and seasonal tasks
Start planning freeCare Requirements
☀️ Light
Partial to full shade; tolerates deep shade under trees.
One of the few edible herbs that genuinely thrives in shade. It will grow in full sun if given adequate moisture, but the foliage scorches in hot exposed positions. North-facing borders and woodland edges are ideal.
💧 Watering
Moderate; keep soil consistently moist, especially in dry spells.
Sweet cicely prefers reliably moist, humus-rich soil. Water during prolonged dry periods in summer to prevent powdery mildew and premature die-back. Mulching in spring retains moisture effectively.
🌱 Fertilizing
Minimal; a spring compost mulch is usually sufficient.
Apply a 5–8 cm layer of well-rotted compost or leaf mould around the crown in early spring. On very poor soils, a balanced granular fertiliser at half the recommended rate can be worked in at the same time.
✂️ Pruning
Cut flower stems to prevent self-seeding; cut to ground in late autumn.
Remove faded flower stems promptly if you want to control spread. In midsummer, cutting half the stems to the ground encourages a fresh flush of tender leaves. Cut all growth to the ground once it yellows in autumn.
❄️ Overwintering
Fully hardy; dies back naturally and regrows reliably each spring.
Sweet cicely is one of the hardiest perennial herbs and needs no winter protection in the UK. Cut back dead foliage in late autumn or leave it as light mulch over the crown. New growth appears very early — often before the last frosts.
Growing Tips
Use the whole plant
Every part of sweet cicely is edible — pick young leaves to sweeten fruit desserts and jams, harvest green seeds for intense anise flavour, and dig roots in autumn to cook like parsnip.
One of the first herbs in spring
Sweet cicely breaks dormancy very early — often by late February. Cut a few stems once the fresh leaves appear and they will flush again for weeks.
Control spread by deadheading
This herb self-seeds prolifically. Remove flower heads as soon as they fade if you want to limit the colony — once the seeds ripen they scatter widely.
Perfect for shade
Sweet cicely thrives under trees and in north-facing borders where most herbs struggle. It is one of the most useful shade-tolerant edible perennials for a UK garden.
Pests & Diseases
Pest Slugs and Snails
Identification: Irregular holes in young leaves and stems, silvery slime trails on foliage and soil nearby.
- Set beer traps around the base of the plant in spring when new growth emerges.
- Apply organic slug pellets (ferric phosphate) around the crown in wet weather.
- Apply metaldehyde-based slug pellets sparingly around the plant (avoid where children or pets have access).
Pest Aphids
Identification: Clusters of small green or black insects on new shoots and the underside of young leaves; sticky honeydew residue.
- Spray with a strong jet of water to dislodge colonies.
- Apply diluted insecticidal soap or neem oil spray, repeating weekly until clear.
- Spray with a pyrethrin-based contact insecticide in the evening to minimise impact on pollinators.
Disease Powdery Mildew Erysiphe heraclei
Symptoms: White powdery coating on leaf surfaces in late summer, especially on plants in dry soil or poor airflow.
Treatment: Remove and bin (do not compost) affected leaves. Spray remaining foliage with a diluted bicarbonate of soda solution or a sulphur-based fungicide.
Prevention: Maintain consistent soil moisture with mulching. Avoid planting in enclosed spots with poor air circulation.
Disease Crown Rot Phytophthora spp.
Symptoms: Collapsing stems at the base, blackened crown tissue, foul smell from the root zone.
Treatment: Dig up the plant, remove all blackened material, dust with sulphur powder, and replant in fresh well-drained soil in a different location.
Prevention: Plant in free-draining soil; avoid heavy clay or waterlogged spots. Improve drainage with grit when planting.
Spacing & Planting
| Plant spacing | 60 cm |
| Row spacing | 75 cm |
| Mature height | 90 cm |
| Mature spread | 60 cm |
Log Sweet Cicely in your garden — track growth, care, and harvests year after year
Start planning free