Marsh parsley, in the Apiaceae (or carrot) family, is a summer annual. It has finely-dissected leaves and forms a branched mound up to 2 feet tall. Flowers are small, white, and tinged pink. Young seedlings strongly resemble wild carrot seedlings and emerge from mid-spring though mid-autumn with multiple generations per year. Plants prefer moist areas, growing well on irrigation ditches and in standing water of production areas. No data are available on herbicide effectiveness. Its native habitat, which includes most of the tropics, includes wet to dry thickets or fields, ditches, waste sites, and other low areas. Under ideal conditions, this plant can spread out of its cultivated area into lawns and other locations where it is considered weedy and may become invasive in some environments.. Although caution should be used when harvesting for human consumption, the leaves are used by some as a substitute for parsley. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: It has weedy tendencies and self-seeds easily.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Clay; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil drainage
Frequent Standing Water | Moist
Mature size
Height: 0 ft. 6 in. - 2 ft. 0 in. | Width: 0 ft. 6 in. - 2 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Rapid
Maintenance
High; Medium
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Ascending; Erect; Spreading
Texture
Fine
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Linear
Leaf size
1-3 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
The plant has finely-dissected leaves and forms a branched mound up to 2 feet tall. As the leaves ascend the stem, they become smaller in size.
Flower color
Pink; White
Flower value
Long Bloom Season
Flower form
Umbel
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
Flowers are small (less than half of 1 mm), white and tinged pink. Young seedlings strongly resemble wild carrot seedlings and emerge from mid-spring through mid-autumn with multiple generations per year.
Bloom time
Fall; Summer
Fruit color
Brown/Copper; Green
Fruit type
Schizocarp
Fruit detail
The light green immature fruits turn brown as they mature and fall to the ground. Each fruit contains 2 seeds.
Stem color
Green
Stem detail
The smooth stems are coarse and grooved, striped with light green to yellow-green veins.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Mexico to South Tropical America
Distribution
AL, AR, AZ, FL, GA, MI, NC, NM, OK, SC, TN, TX, VA