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Culinary Schools & Cooking Classes FREE Food & Beverage Publications CELERY HISTORYSee also: Celery Facts ; Celery Root or Celeriac ; Celery Trivia ; Common Types of Celery Worldwide:CELERY, Apium graveolens L. var. dulce, Other names: Stalk celery.
CELERIAC, Apium graveolens L. var. rapaceum What’s in a name?Apium: from the German Eppich. Graveolens: from the Latin Gravis "grave, heavy" and Olens "smelling" from the verb olere. The Greek writer Homer referred to celery as "selinon". The Latin name was "selinun" and the French name "celeri" is similar to the name we use today. Eat Some History:Celery is believed to be originally from the Mediterranean basin. Ancient literature documents that celery, or a similar plant form, was cultivated for medicinal purposes before 850 B.C. It’s claimed medicinal purposes were probably attributable to it’s volatile oils, contained in all portions, but mostly the seed. During ancient times Ayurvedic physicians used celery seed to treat the following conditions: colds, flu, water retention, poor digestion, various types of arthritis, and liver and spleen ailments. Woven garlands of wild celery are reported to have been found in early Egyptian tombs. Celery was considered a holy plant in the classical period of Greece and was worn by the winners of the Nemean Games, similar to the use of bay leaves at the Olympic Games. The Nemean Games were conducted every second year, starting in 573, in the small city of Nemea in southern Greece in the Poloponnes peninsula.
The Romans valued celery more for cooking than for religion although much superstition was connected with it. The celery plant was thought to bring bad fortune under certain circumstances.
Currently California harvests about 23,500 acres per year, Florida 3,500 acres per year, Texas 1,200 acres per year, Michigan 3,000 acres per year, and Ohio less than 50 acres per year. California harvests year-round, Florida harvest from December to May, Texas from December to April, Michigan and Ohio from July thru September. Per capita consumption of celery is about 9 to 10 pounds per person annually. (2004) California Celery Research Advisory Board - www.celeryresearch.com Home | About & Contact Us | Chef James Bio | Website Bibliography | Food_Links Please feel free to link to any pages of FoodReference.com from your website.
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