THE TRILLIUMS. 



EARLY WOODLAND BEAUT 



AMONG the loveliest of our spring wood-flowers, 

 and not at all such sluggards as their common 

 name of " Wake-Robin " would seem to indi- 

 cate, are the trilliums. Early in April the 

 dwarf white Triilium nivalc uncurls its small, 

 wavy, white petals in the edges of rich woods, all over 

 our eastern Alleghany slope and westward from Ohio to 



Variations of Trillium 

 grandiflorum. 



Wisconsin. Though smaller than most of the other spe- 

 cies, the little nodding flower of this triilium, with petals 

 only an inch long, is quite pretty, and is eagerly sought 

 for and gladly welcomed by young botanists as a herald 

 of the spring awakening of the other "robins." 



ES WORTHY OF CULTIVATION. 



The dark-flowered trilliums are next to bloom, the 

 great purple "Benjamin" among the first. This is T. 

 crectum, the largest and brightest-colored of the purple 

 trilliums, but having no odor, whhich leaves much to be 

 desired. 



The Latin name of triilium, referring to the structure 

 of the flower and plant, fits the family well, for it has 

 only three leaves, sepals- and petals. The ovary is three- 

 celled, and the number of stamens is twice three. But 

 "Benjamin's" specific name of erectum is not so well 

 applied, for instead of standing erect the peduncle is usu- 

 ally nodding, giving to Benjamin a thoughtful attitude. 



T. sessile and T. reciirvatum, the other 

 two best-known forms of purple tril- 

 / ^'^ tiums, are smaller in flower than T. 



/ ■ erectum, and of a darker color. They 



( \ are also sessile upon the leaf -stem, while 



/ \^ T. erectum has a peduncle one to three 



\ . ' inches long. 



J*^;*^ \ \ <:-o\^ damp woods and 



^^T^^*^ ' bogs of New England, and 



southward among the 

 higher Alleghanies, is found 

 the pretty painted triilium 

 T. erythrocarpum. Its 

 petals are pointed, wavy 

 and widely spreading, with 

 bright markings of pink. 

 Its leaves are petioled, and 

 the peduncle nearly erect. 



Trillium stylosum is a 

 shy little beauty, hiding its 

 wavy pink petals under its 

 top cluster of three sessile 

 leaves, so that you must 

 look closely to find it. The 

 leaves are oblong, tapering 

 to both ends, and the rose- 

 colored petals of the flower 

 are much longer and 

 broader than the greenish 

 sepals. I believe this spe- 

 cies is not common north 

 of Virginia. 



The queen of all tril- 

 liums is T. grandiflorum, 

 or " white wood-lily," as it 

 is sometimes called. It 

 blooms later than the 

 others, and in the northern states is somewhat rare, but 

 in the southland is perhaps the commonest of all the spe- 

 cies. The plant is usually about a foot in height, with 

 only one stem, springing from a tuberous root-stalk. Its 

 three leaves near the top are of a bright, shining green, 



