Zizia aptera (Heart-leaved golden alexander)

Zizia aptera (A. Gray) Fernald

Heart-leaved golden alexander, meadow zizia, heart-leaved golden alexanders

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Apiales	Includes carrots, celery, parsley, and ivy
Family	Apiaceae	Carrot or parsley family, also includes angelica, anise, caraway, celery, chervil, cicely, coriander/cilantro, cumin, dill, fennel, hemlock, lovage, Queen Anne’s Lace, parsnip
Genus	Zizia	Named for German botanist Johann Baptist Ziz (1779–1829)
Species	aptera	Means “without wings”

About plant names...

Heart-leaved golden alexanders are North American natives.

Identification: Plants reach 12-30" (30-76 cm) in height. Lower leaves are divided into threes; upper leaves in two. Leaves are up to 4" (10 cm) long and 3" (7.6 cm) wide, heart-shaped, with finely toothed edges. Flowerheads have the overall shape of a gently curved umbrella about 2-3" (5-7.6 cm) across, divided into smaller groups (parasols?). The smaller groups approximately 25 tiny yellow flowers, each less than ⅛" (3.2 mm) across, each with five petals. The dried seedheads become purple.

Here are two golden alexanders:

6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
≈ 7 × 10" (16 × 24 cm)

5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 4" (15 × 10 cm)

	You are here Zizia aptera	*Zizia aurea*
Common Name	heart-leaved golden alexander	golden zizia
Plant	12-30" (30-76 cm) high.	18-36" (45-91 cm) high.
Flowers	Umbrella-shaped cluster about 2-3" (5-7.6 cm) across, split into smaller groups of tiny yellow flowers, about 25 per group.	Umbrella-shaped cluster about 2" (5 cm) across, split into smaller groups of tiny yellow flowers, about 25 per group.
Leaves	Lower leaves are heart-shaped. Up to 4" (10 cm) long × 3" (7.6 cm) wide.	Lower leaves divided into threes, upper leaves in two. Up to 2½" (6.3 cm) long × 2½" (6.3 cm) wide.
Range/ Zones	USDA Zones: 3-8	USDA Zones: 3-8
Habitats	Black soil prairies, hillside prairies, rocky upland woodlands, limestone glades, bluffs, abandoned fields, and roadsides	Prairies, glades, open woods, fields, thickets
Type	Wild	Wild

Edibility: Not edible. Caution: the flowerheads of these plants resemble those of water hemlock (Cicuta maculata), which is extremely poisonous Skull & Crossbones . Water hemlock flowers are white, while zizias are yellow.

Online References:

Zizia aptera on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

Zizia aptera at Illinois Wildflowers

Zizia aptera at the Missouri Botanical Garden

Zizia aptera at Minnesota Wildflowers

Zizia aptera on www.nativeplanttrust.org (PDF)

5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
≈ 9 × 6" (23 × 15 cm)

Zizia aptera (A. Gray) Fernald var. occidentalis Fernald

Zizia cordata W.D.J. Koch ex DC.

Zizia aptera description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 16 Sep 2020.

6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
≈ 7 × 10" (16 × 24 cm)

Range: Zones 3-8:

About this map...