About
Scientific Name:Petroselinum crispum, apiaceae family. AKA devils oatmeal
Origin: native to central and eastern Mediteranean (Sardinia, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, Turkey, southern Italy, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Malta, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia)
Cultivation: most commonly you will find the varieties that we use for their leaves (curly and flat leaf parsley) but in Europe it is also cultivated for its root. This makes sense as it is a relative of carrot
Parsley comes originally from the greek for rock celery or petroselinum. It came down through Latin to french ending at peresil. Which was then merged with the old English petersilie (which is the current German word for parsley.)
Curly leaf is used as a garnish, flat leaf is similar but stronger flavour and easier to cultivate, root parsley is common as a snack or vegetable in soups and casseroles in most parts of europe. I personally have never seen or worked with root parsley but I am certainly intrigued by it. In the 3rd century BC linnaeus says that its wild habitat was Sardinia. It then supposedly began cultivation in Europe in 1548.
Uprooting parsley is bad luck and also will kill the plant, it does not like being transplanted. In this vein medieval Europeans believed you could kill someone by plucking a parsley sprig while saying their name. Also, from European folklore parsley should be sown on good Friday and only by pregnant women or witches. Otherwise the harvest would not be good.
Persephone is often depicted holding a bundle of parsley. Ancient Greeks associated it with death. They decorated tombs with it and it was never eaten because of this they also wouldn't grow it indoors. They thought it would bring death into the house. They did use it as fodder for horses.
Romans used parsley as a garnish that would keep away contamination from their food. It was used to sweeten the breath (like a palette cleanser) after their meal. They also wore it for protection if worn on the head it would protect specifically from inebriation
Magical
Correspondence: Air. Mercury. Masc/Yang Libra. Persephone, Venus and Aphrodite.
Death, rebirth, purification, cleansing, strength, protection, lust, transformation, fertility, prosperity, luck, calms and protects home, restores sense of well being, strength and vitality after illness, protects food from contamination. The underworld - divination and dreamwork
How to use: Cook with it! Use dried in sachets. Burn it. Wear it on your body. Dress your candle in its dried leaves. Use essential oils (safely, in a carrier oil) in your ritual bath.
Mundane
As always, here are some broad claims that you can look further into with the studies provided in the healthline article. Contains a fair amount of vitamins A, K and C. The addition of parsley to the diet may aid in healthy blood sugar levels. It contains carotenoids which may improve heart health by lowering bad cholesterol and chronic inflammation. Parsley may promote kidney health however it also contains oxalates which may increase your risk for kidney stones. So I assume there is some sort of balance that needs to be kept there, not sure it's worth the risk and maybe just increase your water consumption!
In addition to those here are some other mundane uses i found: Parsley contains essential oils including apiol and myristicin which have antibacterial qualities. A parsley infusion used as a hair rinse can prevent or treat lice infestations. It can be used as a diuretic. It can be used to encourage a late menstruation (and therefore large doses should be avoided by pregnant women.) An ointment or compress can be used to soothe bug bites.
In the kitchen: very commonly used as a garnish (this of course comes from the Roman’s) but in addition to that fresh parsley is a great addition to salad (especially tabbouleh or bean salad!) Of course dried parsley is a great addition to many dishes the most notable being tomato sauce but also a fantastic addition to roasted veggies and vinaigrettes!
A few link I used:
Witchipedia
Healthline
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