Cumin is the dried seed of the herb Cuminum cyminum, a member of the parsley family. The cumin plant grows to 30-50 cm (12-20 in) tall and is harvested by hand. It is an annual herbaceous plant, with a slender, glabrous, branched stem that is 20-30 cm (8-12 in) tall and has a diameter of 3-5 cm (1+1/4-2 in). Each branch has two to three sub-branches. All the branches attain the same height, so the plant has a uniform canopy. The stem is colored grey or dark green. The leaves are 5-10 cm (2-4 in) long, pinnate or bipinnate, with thread-like leaflets. The flowers are small, white or pink, and borne in umbels. Each umbel has five to seven umbellets. The fruit is a lateral fusiform or ovoid achene 4-5 mm (1/6-1/5 in) long, containing two mericarps with a single seed.[12] Cumin seeds have eight ridges with oil canals. They resemble caraway seeds, being oblong in shape, longitudinally ridged, and yellow-brown in color, like other members of the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) such as caraway, parsley, and dill.