During a 2-mile walk through Loch Lomond, I often go down Lomond Avenue where I see a profusion of native wildflowers on either side of two stone structures dividing the street south of Killarney Pass Circle. I mentioned seeing gray-headed coneflowers in July last year—but it’s just about late May, early June, and the wildflowers showing their blooms at this time are called Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea).

My husband I use native plants in our yard, but didn’t know much about Golden Alexanders until several years ago—that’s when we decided to plant some in our yard, and they are doing very nicely. The plant attracts native insects, including native bees and butterflies, which visit them for the nectar and/or pollen.

These lovely plants grow 1 to 2 feet tall with leaves that have finely serrated (or toothed) margins. A cluster of yellow flowers blooms at the top of the plant in May and June. You can see the next stage of this plant a few weeks afterward when oblong, green fruits begin growing. In summer, black swallowtail caterpillars nibble on the leaves. Don’t worry—they won’t kill all the plants. In autumn, the leaves and fruits turn a light purple, making them a plant for all seasons.

Golden Alexander grows well in open woodlands as well as moist, sunny meadows. And guess what? They do well in the clayey soils we have here in Loch Lomond. If you’ve got a space like that in your yard, they’re easy to transplant from someone else’s yard. In fact, we dug ours up from someone in Loch Lomond who let us have some of theirs. Please ask first before digging up some Golden Alexanders. It’s best to transplant these in spring or fall, watering well so their roots can get established.

Don’t confuse these plants with the similar wild parsnip, which is not native to this region and can cause a rash if your skin touches it and then gets exposed to sun. Wild parsnip blooms later than Golden Alexander, typically in late June or July. It also gets taller, up to about 5 feet, and its leaves have deep forks as opposed to the shallow margins on the leaves of Golden Alexander.

Ever since I planted Golden Alexander in my yard, I’ve been thrilled when it re-emerges each spring and opens up its lovely golden blooms. One online arboretum post said Golden Alexander should be in every garden. I agree.