ALEXANDERS (botanical name, Smyrnium olusatrum family Umbelliferae), a stout herbaceous plant with a furrowed, much-branched stem I-3ft. high, and large compound leaves with broad sheathing stalks, and broad, cut or lobed segments. The small yellow flowers are borne in compound umbels. The plant is a native of the Mediterranean region, and was formerly cultivated as a pot-herb. It is now found apparently wild in the British Isles. In the United States the name is applied to the meadow-parsnip (Zizia), as golden alexanders (Z. aurea).