The wildflower alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum) photographed in Cornwall in May

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Alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum) in flower next to a country footpath in Cornwall, England, 3 May 2022

The photographs here show the wildflower Alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum) growing in Cornwall in May 2022.

The plant has about the same size and general appearance from a distance as other umbellifers such as cow parsley and also grows along hedgerows but the flowers appear earlier in the year and have yellow tinge. Another difference is that it is limited to certain parts of England. The reason for the yellow appearance is shown in the last photograph. There are white petals but the centre of each flower is yellow.

Two flowers and the upper leaves on an Alexanders plant (Smyrnium olusatrum) in Cornwall, 3 May 2022. The flower is a compound umbel, meaning that each stalk in the main umbel leads to a secondary umbel called an umbellule. The umbellule itself consists of multiple flowers, shown in the next photograph.
Close-up of a single umbellule of an alexanders flower showing the yellow centres and the small white petals. Cornwall, 3 May 2022.

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