Grow Native Golden Alexander Zizia aurea

Brighten your spring and early summer garden with the showy flowers of Golden Alexander.

You can find small colonies of this native growing in wet sunny meadows, moist prairies and open woodlands. It prefers moist soil but will tolerate drier conditions, making it well suited to rain gardens.

Golden Alexander is hardy in zones 3 to 8 and prefers full sun to light shade but will tolerate shadier locations. This short-lived perennial will self-seed, allowing it to naturalize when growing conditions are right.

The 1- to 3-feet-tall plants are topped with bright yellow flowers similar to other members of the carrot family. A variety of bees and butterflies will nectar on the flowers and black swallowtail caterpillars feed on the leaves.

Golden Alexander is relatively pest free and the deer tend to leave it be.

A bit more information: Don’t confuse Golden Alexander with the taller and later flowering wild parsnip Pastinaca sativa. The invasive wild parsnip causes severe rashes, blistering and burns when it contacts the skin on sunny days.