Native to Europe and Southwestern Asia. The plant probably originated in Persia and was originally cultivated for its leaves and seeds. European voyagers carried the carrot to America soon after discovery of the New World.
Apply a poultice of grated carrots to sores and infected wounds, it is also good for sinus congestion.
The carrot, Daucus carota L., is a fascinating, and often overlooked, plant. The wild carrot, D. carota, is sometimes called black carrot because it can be deep purple in hue. This color is indicative of the plant’s high anthocyanin content; the pigments that lend this rich color are also suggestive of the highly potent antioxidant effect of this plant (Esatbeyoglu et al. 2016). Furthermore, D. carota has been examined in the lab for its potential anti-diabetic properties and found to be promising in its ability to inhibit intestinal glucose uptake (ibid; Karkute et al. 2018). Eating cultivated carrots has also been shown to be beneficial to health. Studies have demonstrated that regular dietary intake of carrot is associated with a decrease in risk for breast cancer development (Chen et al. 2018).