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Another theory is that when [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] provincial governors took over power from Greek colonists, they over-farmed silphium and rendered the soil unable to yield the type that was said to be of such medicinal value. [[Theophrastus]] wrote in [[Historia Plantarum (Theophrastus)|''Enquiry into Plants'']] that the type of ''Ferula'' specifically referred to as "silphium" was odd in that it could not be [[Horticulture|cultivated]].<ref>Theophrastus, III.2.1, VI.3.3</ref> He reports inconsistencies in the information he received about this, however.<ref>Theophrastus, VI.3.5</ref> This could suggest the plant is similarly sensitive to soil chemistry as [[huckleberries]] which, when grown from seed, are devoid of fruit.<ref name="BBC2017"/>
Similar to the soil theory, another theory holds that the plant was a [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]], which often results in very desired traits in the first generation, but second-generation can yield very unpredictable outcomes. This could have resulted in plants without fruits, when planted from seeds, instead of asexually reproducing through their roots.<ref name="BBC2017"/>
[[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] reported that the last known stalk of silphium found in Cyrenaica was given to Emperor [[Nero]] "as a curiosity".<ref name="PlinyXIX"/>
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