124 WILD FLOWER FAMILIES 
Paintep Tritium. T hroughout its range 
the Painted Trillium 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 
locally 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 
