Apiaceae - carrot family
Flowers in an umbel is a distinctive feature of the Apiaceae.
Maine is home to 37 species in 25 genera that grow without cultivation. If you already know which species you have or are interested in learning about, click on the appropriate species link below. Otherwise, to determine which genus that the plant in question belongs to, refer to the table immediately below the species list.
Aegopodium (1 species)
Aegopodium podagraria - bishop’s goutweed
Aethusa (1 species)
Aethusa cynapium - fool’s-parsley
Anethum (1 species)
Anethum graveolens - dill
Angelica (2 species)
Angelica atropurpurea - purple-stemmed Angelica
Angelica lucida - sea coast Angelica
Anthriscus (1 species)
Anthriscus sylvestris - wild chervil
Aralia (3 species)
Aralia hispida - bristly sarsaparilla
Aralia nudicaulis - wild sarsaparilla
Aralia racemosa ssp. racemosa - American spikenard
Carum (1 species)
Carum carvi - caraway
Cicuta (2 species)
Cicuta bulbifera - bulblet-bearing water-hemlock
Cicuta maculata var. maculata - spotted water-hemlock
Conioselinum (1 species)
Conioselinum chinense - Chinese hemlock-parsley
Conium (1 species)
Conium maculatum - poison-hemlock
Coriandrum (1 species)
Coriandrum sativum - coriander
Cryptotaenia (1 species)
Cryptotaenis canadensis - Canada honewort
Daucus (1 species)
Daucus carota - Queen Anne’s lace
Heracleum (3 species)
Heracleum mantegazzianum - giant cow-parsnip
Heracleum maximum - American cow-parsnip
Heracleum sphondylium - European cow-parsnip
Hydrocotyle (1 species)
Hydrocotyle americana - American marsh-pennywort
Levisticum (1 species)
Levisticum officinale - garden lovage
Ligusticum (1 species)
Ligusticum scoticum ssp. scoticum - Scotch lovage
Lilaeopsis (1 species)
Lilaeopsis chinensis - eastern grasswort
Nanopanax (1 species)
Nanopanax trifolius - dwarf ginseng
Osmorhiza (4 species)
Osmorhiza berteroi - mountain sweet-cicely
Osmorhiza claytonii - bland sweet-cicely
Osmorhiza depauperata - blunt-fruited sweet-cicely
Osmorhiza longistylis - long-styled sweet-cicely
Panax (1 species)
Panax quinquefolius - American ginseng
Pastinaca (1 species)
Pastinaca sativa - wild parsnip
Pimpinella (1 species)
Pimpinella saxifraga ssp. saxifraga - solid-stemmed burnet-saxifrage
Sanicula (3 species)
Sanicula marilandica - Maryland sanicle
Sanicula odorata - clustered sanicle
Sanicula trifoliata - large-fruited sanicle
Sium (1 species)
Sium suave - water-parsnip
Zizia (1 species)
Zizia aurea - common golden Alexanders
| red font = unique character state or nearly so | plant height | leaf blade division | umbel division | umbel width | petal color | style number |
| Aegopodium | 0.4–1 m | mostly biternate | compound; 15–25 primary branches | 6–12 cm | white | 2 |
| Aethusa | ||||||
| Anethum | ||||||
| Angelica | 0.5–1.2 m | pinnately decompound | compound; 20–many primary branches | greenish white | 2 | |
| Anthriscus | ||||||
| Aralia | 0.2–3 m | simple; [2–?] primary branches | white, greenish white | 5 | ||
| Carum | 0.2–0.8 m | pinnately dissected | compound; 7–14 primary branches | white | 2 | |
| Cicuta | 0.2–2 m | once- to thrice-pinnate | compound; [?] primary branches | to 12 cm | white | 2 |
| Conioselinum | ||||||
| Conium | ||||||
| Coriandrum | ||||||
| Cryptotaenis | ||||||
| Daucus | 0.4–1.0 m | pinnately decompound | compound; [?] primary branches | 4–12 cm | white | 2 |
| Heracleum | 2–5 m | ternate or ternate-pinnate | compound; 50–150 primary branches | to 50 cm | white | 2 |
| Hydrocotyle | ||||||
| Levisticum | ||||||
| Ligusticum | 0.3–0.6 m | once- to twice-ternate | compound; 8–20 primary branches | white | 2 | |
| Lilaeopsis | ||||||
| Nanopanax | white | |||||
| Osmorhiza | ||||||
| Panax | ||||||
| Pastinaca | to 1.5 m | mostly once-pinnate | compound; 15–25 primary branches | 10–20 cm | yellow | 2 |
| Pimpinella | 0.3–1 m | pinnately divided to dissected | compound; 8–20 primary branches | white | 2 | |
| Sanicula | ||||||
| Sium | 0.3–2 m | once-pinnate | compound; 6–many primary branches | 3–12 cm | white | 2 |
| Zizia |
Aegopodium (goutweed)
[information to be added]
Aegopodium podagraria (bishop’s goutweed) - [information to be added]
(click on image to enlarge)
Aethusa (fool’s-parsley)
[information to be added]
Aethusa cynapium (fool’s-parsley) - [information to be added]
Anethum (dill)
[information to be added]
Aethusa cynapium (fool’s-parsley) - [information to be added]
Angelica (Angelica)
[information to be added]
| char. 1 | char. 2 | char. 3 | |
| A. atropurpurea | |||
| A. lucida |
Angelica atropurpurea (purple-stemmed Angelica) - [information to be added]
Angelica lucida (sea coast Angelica) - [information to be added]
(click on an image to enlarge)
Anthriscus (fool’s-parsley)
[information to be added]
Anthriscus sylvestris (wild chervil) - [information to be added]
Aralia (sarsaparilla)
[information to be added]
| red font = unique character state or nearly so | plant height | stem armature | leaf arrangement | petal number | petal color | fruit color |
| A. hispida | 20–90 cm | sharp bristles at the base | alternate | 5 | white | dark purple |
| A. nudicaulis | 20–40 cm | absent | only one leaf, growing from ground level | 4 | greenish white | purple-black |
| A. racemosa | to 300 cm | absent | alternate | 5 | greenish white | red, turning darker with age |
Aralia hispida (bristly sarsaparilla) - [information to be added]
(click on image to enlarge)
Aralia nudicaulis (wild sarsaparilla) - This does not appear to be a woody plant at first sight, but if you run your fingers down what might be thought to be the stem, you will come to the woody part around ground level. What is above ground is a single leaf.
(click on image to enlarge)
Aralia racemosa (American spikenard) - [information to be added]
Carum (caraway)
[information to be added]
Carum carvi (caraway) - [information to be added]
Cicuta (water-hemlock)
[information to be added]
| plant height | stems | leaves | umbel width | petal margin | |
| C. bulbifera | 0.2–1 m | [?] | divided once | 2–5 cm | [?] |
| C. maculata | 0.5–2 m | with a whitish bloom, usually mottled or striped with purple | divided 2–3 times | 5–6 cm | with reflexed margins |
Cicuta bulbifera (bulblet-bearing water-hemlock) - [information to be added]
Cicuta maculata (spotted water-hemlock) - [information to be added]
Conioselinum (hemlock-parsley)
[information to be added]
Conioselinum chinense (Chinese hemlock-parsley) - [information to be added]
Conium (poison-hemlock)
[information to be added]
Conium maculatum (poison-hemlock) - [information to be added]
Coriandrum (coriander)
[information to be added]
Coriandrum sativum (coriander) - [information to be added]
Cryptotaenis (honewort)
[information to be added]
Cryptotaenia canadensis (Canada honewort) - [information to be added]
Daucus (Queen Anne’s lace)
[information to be added]
Daucus carota (Queen Anne’s lace)
root: The root is a taproot, occasionally branched. Before the aerial stem appears, it is edible after boiling. Following the development of the aerial stem, the taproot becomes woody and unpalatable. Even then, though, the outer portion of the root can be peeled away and eaten. (source: Ancestral Plants volume 1, by Arthur Haines; p. 119.)
stem: Although this species is considered a biennial, it sometimes can take as many as five years for an aerial stem to appear above the rosette of basal leaves. (source: A Guide to Enjoying Wildflowers by Donald and Lillian Stokes; p. 265.) The aerial stem is pubescent.
leaves: Both the basal leaves (of the rosette) and the alternate, cauline leaves are finely dissected.
flowers: The flowers grow in a compound umbel (i.e., each branch of the primary umbel gives rise to a secondary umbel, sometimes called an umbellet). Just below the compound umbel are prominent bracts, finely divided like the leaves. Each radially symmetric flower has five white (or nearly so) petals, five stamens that alternate with the petals, and a single pistil that is composed of two fused carpels. Each of the fused carpels gives rise to a stigma. Near the middle of the inflorescence is sometimes a sterile, purple-petaled flower.
habitat: This native of Eurasia is common in fields.
(click on an image to enlarge)
Heracleum (cow-parsnip)
[information to be added]
| red font = unique character state or nearly so | char. 1 | char. 2 | char. 3 | char. 4 | char. 5 | char. 6 |
| H. mantegazzianum | ||||||
| H. maximum | ||||||
| H. sphondylium |
Heracleum mantegazzianum (giant cow-parsnip) - [information to be added]
(click on an image to enlarge)
Heracleum maximum (American cow-parsnip) - [information to be added]
Heracleum sphondylium (European cow-parsnip) - [information to be added]
Hydrocotyle (marsh-pennywort)
[information to be added]
Hydrocotyle americana (American marsh-pennywort) - [information to be added]
Levisticum (lovage)
[information to be added]
Levisticum officinale (garden lovage) - [information to be added]
Ligusticum (lovage)
[information to be added]
Ligusticum scoticum ssp. scoticum (Scotch lovage) - [information to be added]
(click on image to enlarge)
Lilaeopsis (grasswort)
[information to be added]
Lilaeopsis chinensis (eastern grasswort) - [information to be added]
Nanopanax (dwarf ginseng)
[information to be added]
Nanopanax trifolius (dwarf ginseng) - [information to be added]
(click on image to enlarge)
Osmorhiza (sweet-cicely)
[information to be added]
| red font = unique character state or nearly so | char. 1 | char. 2 | char. 3 | char. 4 | char. 5 |
| O. berteroi | |||||
| O. claytonii | |||||
| O. depauperata | |||||
| O. lonngistylis |
Osmorhiza berteroi (mountain sweet-cicely) - [information to be added]
Osmorhiza claytonii (bland sweet-cicely) - [information to be added]
Osmorhiza depauperata (blunt-fruited sweet-cicely) - [information to be added]
Osmorhiza longistylis (long-styled sweet-cicely) - [information to be added]
Panax (American ginseng)
[information to be added]
Panax quinquefolius (American ginseng) - [information to be added]
(click on an image to enlarge)
Pastinaca (wild parsnip)
[information to be added]
Pastinaca sativa (wild parsnip) - [information to be added]
(click on an image to enlarge)
Pimpinella (burnet-saxifrage)
[information to be added]
Pimpinella saxifraga (solid-stemmed burnet-saxifrage) - [information to be added]
Sanicula (sanicle)
[information to be added]
| red font = unique character state or nearly so | char. 1 | char. 2 | char. 3 | char. 4 | char. 5 |
| S. marilandica | |||||
| S. odorata | |||||
| S. trifoliata |
Sanicula marilandica (Maryland sanicle) - [information to be added]
Sanicula odorata (clustered sanicle) - [information to be added]
Sanicula trifoliata (large-fruited sanicle) - [information to be added]
Sium (water-parsnip)
[information to be added]
Sium suave (water-parsnip) - [information to be added]
(click on an image to enlarge)
Zizia (golden Alexanders)
[information to be added]
Zizia aurea (common golden Alexanders) - [information to be added]