Grow Badishep at Home Badi Shep Fennel Seeds Sauf plant Properties and Types

Grow badi shep at home, very easy growing plant among spices and herbs and also does not require much care. Used for healing in various disorders badi shep is a favorite among all age groups and has become  a  quick after meal ritual in many homes.
 Foeniculum vulgari (little hay) the botanical name , in sanskrit known as shatapushpa.
sauf, badi shpe, paan muheri, variari, badi-sopu, fennel seeds have plenty of names as I came to know of  this beautiful tasty easy growing herb. While we gorged on badi shep since childhood,  the mouth fulls of tasty sweet juicy seeds still brings back lots of happy memories. And while this still is an important  part of the daily after meal / tea ritual, the different types of badi shep available in market did fascinate us.
The colorful sugar coated sweet  badi shep , commonly known as "chuhe ki lendi" the name sounds YUK today (named maybe because of the shape)  but was a relishing one then. Yellow, red, orange, white, greens , blues all colors of sugar coated badi shep are still loved by children. Then comes the yellow badi shep. Coated with water and haldi, turmeric this has additional properties to aid in healing digestion and colds. There is also this lovely fascinating sweet mixture of colored grated supari and sauf, and of course the beetle leaf metha paan with sauf.  Then there is the dhania ki daal added to badi shep also tasting very inviting  and the dried roasted badi shep that after drying off the moisture again tastes heavenly and melts easily in mouth. Immense possibilities in types of sauf, eating sauf the effects  are the same,  feelings of happiness and well being.
While there are some who mention the ill effects of sauf when taken in large doses regularly for many years, I am sure they out  last the happy effects and thus sauf continues to rule the main ingredient as a great mouth freshener.  A good appetizer badi shep also helps in healthy bowels movements and a decoction of boiling fennel seeds in water  is used to reduce constipation.
The ripe fruits are what we eat as badi shep, they are quite fragrant and very good mouth fresheners since ages.The good quality badi shep are very juicy and as we chew emit a strong fragrance and cleanses the mouth and also aids in digestion. Stimulates appetite and improves digestion sauf has been used after meals and is a regular feature with every paan. Next will share on paan beetle leaf as  the climber is growing profusely commanding attention.

Fennel seeds Badi shep plant

 Such a common name in every household little did I know it was also so easy growing, except for the birds and sparrows who love to nibble on the young shoots and very soon make the pot bald! You will need to cover the early saplings with soft cloth or net to protect from external environmental hazards like strong wind and birds.

Badi shep plant

Fresh badi shep seeds available can be planted in  a flat pot or container till  the new shoots come up, as the plant grows like a climber falling off the container they may be repotted in bigger sized pots. Delicate bushy climber like almost resembles the cyprus vine , the only difference comes when the yellow flowers are seen  as cyprus has bright red funnel shaped flowers.

Fennel seeds grow Badi shep at home

 Buds appear within few weeks after planting seeds, they open as beautiful tiny stars yellow flowers. The seeds  appear as fruits on the plant and fresh seeds are green and juicy. The fruit then matures or dries  off and then we get the fennel seeds available as in the market.
Badi shep  has immense medicinal properties and helps in many diseases, especially stomach disorders.  One of the famous dry spices and herbs this badi shep plant comes as a  bulb that grows underground and spreads fast.
Used also to aid in improving immunity fennel seeds sauf helps in colds and coughs also.
Care of your Badi Shep Plants- Very easy to grow but difficult to care in the beginning.
1) Water in small amounts keeping the soil moist till the new shoots come out.Once the soil dries off the seeds also will not sprout. When plant looks healthy transplant in bigger sized pot carefully   taking care of the bulbs below.
2) Till the shoots grow healthy cover the container with soft cloth or net too protect from birds as they love to pluck these tiny fresh shoots and many times I have given up growing this! as this is quite a hobby and past time for pigeons and sparrows while they come to the garden for a drink.
3) The fresh seeds have juice that is some what acidic and may be heavy on the stomach only dry fennel seeds are good so protect your fennel seeds plant till the fruits ripen..
4) On more watering the plant gets soggy , the stems become limp and plant dies off with too cloggy soil .Well draining soil is essential for healthy growth of badi shep   sauf plant.
5)  With strong sunlight the fruits turn black with very strong sunlight, taste bitter and dry. It is advisable to shift the pot with fruits to a shadier part where the badi shep plant receives partial sunlight.
Badi shep can be very easily grown at home as nowadays it has become very costly this sure will help you to save some money from your grocery expenses!