This flat-leaved parsley is preferred by most gardeners as it is easier to cultivate, being more tolerant of both rain and sunshine. Parsley is actually a member of the carrot family, and is one of the most nutritious of all herbs. Parsley is one of the most used culinary herbs around the globe; it is also considered to aid digestion. Parsley is often said to be a leafy multivitamin. A cup contains more beta carotene than a carrot, almost twice the vitamin C of an orange, more calcium than a cup of milk, and as much as twenty times as much iron as one serving of liver. Parsley is native to the Mediterranean region of Southern Europe and believed it to be specifically the large island of Sardinia off the coast of Italy and southern France. It has been cultivated for more than 2,000 years. When allowed to flower, it produces beautiful, tiny yellow and green flowers from June to August. Bees and other nectar-feeding insects also visit the flowers. Birds such as the goldfinch feed on the seeds.