Parsley (8)

Flowers in the Parsley family have tiny flowers with five petals which usually grow in a cluster in which stalks of nearly equal length grow from a common center and form a flat or curved surface, The leaves are usually divided. There are many more members of this family including Angelica, Sweet Cicely and Spring Parsley.

	Caraway Carum carvi Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Photo taken on: June 4, 2006 Location: Taylor Canyon, GV, CO Life Zones: Plains to montane Habitat: Moist disturbed soil, roadsides Plant grows to 3ft with feathery leaves. NOXIOUS
	Cow Parsnip Heracleum maximum (H. lanatum, H. sphondylium) Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Indian Celery Photo taken on: July 7, 2004 Location: Almont, CO Life Zones: Foothills to montane Habitat: Wet soil Plant can grow to 8ft tall with a stout hairy stem. Flower clusters are up to 8" across. Leaves are large and solid compared to Lovage and Water Hemlock, both of which have dissected leaves.

	Cowbane Oxypolis fendleri Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Fendler's Cowbane Photo taken on: July 22, 2014 Location: Poverty Gulch, GV, CO Life Zones: Montane to subalpine Habitat: Wet soil Plant can grow to 3 feet high with a weak stem. Flowers clusters are up to 2" across. Leaves are divided and soft. Grows at higher elevations and leaves differentiate from Cutleaf Waterparsnip in the same habitat. Brookcress also grows in the same habitat but is more robust and has larger flowers.
	Cutleaf Waterparsnip Berula erecta Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Water Parsnip Photo taken on: October 13, 2010 Location: White Rock Canyon, NM Life Zones: Plains to foothills Habitat: Streams, marshes Grows in water to 3 feet with weak stems leaning on other plants. Leaves are pinnately divided with toothed leaflets that are narrow if submerged, more oval if not. Tiny white flowers grow in umbels with leaf-like bracts. Grows at lower elevations and leaves differentiate from Cowbane in same habitat.
	Lovage Ligusticum porteri Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Osha, Porter's Lovage Photo taken on: July 11, 2004 Location: Oh-Be-Joyful, GV, CO Life Zones: Montane to subalpine Habitat: Moist woods, meadows Grows to 3 feet tall in large colonies. Leaves are fern-like. Often confused with Cow Parsnip; the leaves differentiate between them.
	Water Hemlock Cicuta maculata (C. douglasii) Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Spotted Water Hemlock, Spotted Cowbane Photo taken on: June 18, 2020 Location: Rio Chama, Abiquiu, NM Life Zones: Plains to montane Habitat: Wet soil, ditches, marshes Grows from 2 to 6 feet tall with stout, hollow stems. The stem is smooth with brown or purple streaks. Leaves are divided into long leaflets which are divided again into toothed lance-shaped leaflets which tend to fold inward. The stalk of the leaf forms a sheath around the stem. Distinguishing features are the prominent veins in the leaflets that end in the notches between the teeth and the purplish spots at the base of the stem where it meets the ground. Flower clusters are 3" to 6" across. Compare to Cow Parsnip, Hemlock Waterparsnip and Lovage which are not poisonous, leaves differentiate the species. All parts of the plant are toxic. Extremely POISONOUS. "The most poisonous plant in North America"
	Hemlock Waterparsnip Sium suave Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Water Parsnip Photo taken on: July 12, 2017 Location: Russell Lakes State Wildlife Area, SLV, CO Life Zones: Plains to montane Habitat: Wet soil, ditches, marshes Closely resembles the extremely poisonous Water Hemlock in the same habitat . The leaves differentiate. It grows to 6 feet tall above the water with few branches, the stem is veined but is not spotted. The leaves above water are divided into an odd number of finely toothed leaflets which do not have the strong veins of Water Hemlock.
	Rocky Mountain Hemlock Parsley Conioselinum scopulorum Family: Parsley (Apiaceae) AKA: Hemlock Parsley, Rock Lovage Photo taken on: August 1, 2021 Location: Roaring Judy Fish Hatchery, GV, CO Life Zones: Foothills to alpine Habitat: Moist woodlands, meadows At first glance this looks like Cowbane or a delicate Lovage. The leaves differentiate. It grows from 1 to 4 feet tall with unbranched stems and fern-like leaves divided into finely cut, coarsely toothed leaflets. The base of the stem leaves is enclosed in a sheath. Flowers sometimes have pink buds. Long pointed bractlets extend beyond the flowers.

White/Cream Round Clusters