Aletris aurea aka Golden Colicroot

Aletris aurea is a wildflower that lives for years. People call it golden colicroot, golden unicorn root, or yellow colic root. It is in the Nartheciaceae family. Its home range spans the southeastern United States, west to Texas. NC State gives its range as Virginia south to Florida. It grows in pine savannas, seepage bogs, and pine flatwoods. These sites lie in coastal plains and sandhills. In North Carolina, most grow in the southern Coastal Plain. Its range there reaches the Sandhills and northeastern Piedmont edge too.

The plant grows upright and sheds its leaves with the seasons. Thin, green leaves form a rosette, a ring at the stem base. Each leaf is simple, with one blade, not separate leaflets. Its shape ranges from oval to lance-shaped. The leaves have clear veins but no hairs. NC State's description gives lengths of 0.33–0.67 feet [0.10–0.20 metres]. Its separate entry for leaf length gives a somewhat shorter range. The stem has no scent. The source gives no mature height or width.

Small flowers crowd the top third of the bloom stem. They form a raceme, a flower cluster that looks spike-like. Their hues range from golden yellow to orange. Each flower forms a tube shaped like a bell. It has six tepals, the flower's outer parts. These have a grainy surface, with lobes that stand upright. The plant blooms from May through July, in spring and summer. Butterflies and other pollinators come to the flowers for nectar. It bears capsule fruits in August, after the main bloom season.

Golden colicroot grows best in full sun but takes some shade. It needs acid soil that stays moist to wet. It grows in sand and loam, even in poor soil. The plant stands up to heat and wet ground. Where it grows can point to a bog or swamp. NC State lists USDA hardiness zones 6a through 9b. The source lists seed as the way to grow new plants.

The flowers add a focal point to native and pollinator plantings. NC State lists butterfly gardens and rain gardens as sites too. Yet this species is hard to grow in gardens. Few nurseries sell it. The North Carolina Native Plant Society urges against home planting. NC State reports no major pest or disease problems. The sources give no food-use or toxicity guidance for this species.