🌿 Alekseevsky 38 Anise

What it looks like

Photos show the species, since no cultivar-specific photo verified for this variety — the species photos above are already hosted on this site and attributed as on the species guide.

Why this variety

Alekseevsky 38 is one of the named food varieties of true anise listed for garden plots — bred at the Alekseevskaya Experimental Station, the same station behind the essential-oil variety Alekseevsky 1231 — and it is a food variety first, meaning it was selected for seed you eat, not just oil you distill.

That distinction matters because most anise sold in packets has no variety name at all. Growing a named food variety means you are growing a selection with a recorded identity, and in a crop where named cultivars are scarce, that alone is worth a bed. In Florida, be honest with yourself: this is a long-season trial, and a fall sowing is how you give it a fighting chance.

How to grow

Direct-sow where it will grow, about 1/4 inch deep, in a well-drained bed at the hero spacing. Anise grows a taproot and resents moving, so sow in place and thin gently rather than transplanting. Seed germinates slowly — expect 10 to 21 days — so keep the seed zone evenly moist and do not let it crust over.

In Florida, sow in fall and let the long season run into warm spring: anise needs 120 to 130 days of growth with real warmth at the end to ripen seed. Summer rain falling on ripening umbels is the enemy — it encourages mold and shattering — so a fall sowing that finishes before the summer rains is the honest Florida strategy, and even then, treat anise as a trial, not a promise.

Water & feeding

Water evenly while plants establish, then water at the base and avoid wetting the flower heads. Anise wants steady moisture, not a swamp, and Florida sand dries fast — mulch to hold even moisture without waterlogging.

Feed lightly: compost at planting and one modest side-dress is plenty. Heavy nitrogen grows tall, floppy stems that lodge at the first storm; anise needs to stand up to ripen its seed, and lean feeding helps it do that.

Common problems

• Slow germination — 10 to 21 days is normal; keep the seed zone moist and do not re-sow in panic
• Shattering — seed ripens unevenly and falls if you wait too long; harvest when umbels turn gray-brown, not after
• Mold on ripening seed — summer rain on umbels; fall sowing that finishes before the rains is the defense
• Aphids — cluster on flower heads; blast off with water or leave them for beneficials

Harvest

Harvest when the umbels turn gray-brown and the seeds feel firm — usually late spring from a fall sowing. Cut whole seed heads into a paper bag before they shatter, because anise ripens unevenly and the earliest seeds will fall while the latest are still green.

Dry the heads in a warm, airy room, then shake and winnow the seed. Use it whole in biscotti, breads, and pickles, or ground fresh — anise seed loses its perfume faster ground than whole, so grind only what the recipe needs.

Saving seeds

Alekseevsky 38 is a named food variety of true anise, so it comes true from seed — save seed from your best plants. The full method is in the Saving seeds section of the Anise guide.