[2] The fruits of Silaum species have a carpophore,[2] a supporting slender stalk for each half of a gape or burst open (dehisced) fruit[3] - these are common throughout the family Apiaceae; the carpophore is thread or filament-shaped (filiform).

[2] The mericarps (one carpel of umbelliferous fruit)[4] have acute edges and five, rather low ridges.

[2] Silaum was first formally described in 1754 by the Scottish botanist in charge of the Chelsea Physic Garden, Philip Miller; this description was published in his own reference series, The Gardeners Dictionary (abr., ed.

[2] The etymology of Silaum was not explicitly offered by Miller, who applied a plant name used by Pliny,[6] though it may refer to the mountainous plateau La Sila in southern Italy.

[7] The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) lists ten species that are currently placed in the genus Silaum:[1]