Celery (Apium graveolens Dulce Group or Apium graveolens var. dulce) is a cultivated plant belonging to the species Apium graveolens in the family Apiaceae that has been used as a vegetable since ancient times. The original wild species has been selectively bred over centuries into three primary cultivar groups: stalk celery (Dulce Group), consumed for its fibrous edible stalks; leaf celery (Secalinum Group), grown for its aromatic leaves; and celeriac (Rapaceum Group), cultivated for its large, edible hypocotyl.