124 WILD FLOWER FAMILIES 



Painted Trillium. Throughout its range 

 the Painted Trilhum often takes the place of the 

 large White Wakerobin in the May woods. It 

 delights in moist shady situations, where in many 

 regions it is found in great abundance. It is a 

 very bright blossom and one of the most conspi- 

 cuous of the spring wild flowers. The white 

 petals stand out from the background of green 

 leaves and are made more striking by the blotches 

 of brilliant crimson painted in a large V-shaped 

 spot at the base of each petal. No other flower 

 in its situation is so likely to catch the eye of the 

 stroller through the woods. In New England it 

 is one of the most characteristic of the May wild 

 flowers, although in some regions it is rare or only 

 locallv abundant. It is also found in the north 

 from Nova Scotia to Wisconsin and in the south 

 from Georgia to Missouri, — a wide range, but 

 one in which the species is by no means generally 

 distributed. During much botanizing in Michi- 

 gan and Ohio I never saw the flower. 



BiRTHROOT. The Birthroot or Ill-scented Tril- 

 lium, which is often called the Purple Trillium, 

 resembles the Large-flowered Trillium in its leaves 

 and flower-stalks but differs strikingly in the blos- 

 som, which is flat and shallow like that of the 

 Painted Trillium. In the Northeastern States the 

 petals are generally of a deep maroon color, often 

 becoming redder as they wither, but in Ohio 



