GARDEN GUIDANCE
Wake Robin
by Tom Rood, Master Gardener
Cornell Cooperative Extension

Scattered throughout the forest lands of the eastern part of the United States and Canada is a wonderful spring wildflower. It is one of my favorites: the White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorium). It goes by several names such as wake robin, bath flower, trinity lily, wood lily, stinking Benjamin, birthwort and daffy down lily. It is a member of the lily family and gets its name from its three petals. Trillium means three lily. It covers a wide range growing from Georgia to Minnesota and Alberta and eastward. It has been Ontario's Provincial Flower since 1937.

Occasionally, one may find a four-petal trillium, but that is rare, such as finding a four-leaf clover.Supposedly, it was called the wake robin flower because it bloomed about the time the robins returned from their southern wintering habitats. However, in our area at least, the robins have returned long before the trillium blooms. It might be safe to say that in earlier times when the lands were forest covered, that spring arrived much later than it does now.

There are between 22 and 30 known species of trillium worldwide. The large flowered white trillium T. grandiflorium is our local native wild flower. It blooms in forested areas from late April through early May. The four-inch flowers generally bloom on top of an upright stem that reaches up to 16 inches in height. The flowers open, showing three clear white petals over three green sepals. Over time, the flowers fade to a semi transparent, light pinkish-purple. This fading often gives the illusion that there is another species of trillium with pink petals blooming later than the white version.Our white trillium grows from a thick underground stem called a rhizome and is very difficult to transplant; such attempts often fail.

Besides being illegal to remove plants from the wild, it is also unethical. Since attempts are prone to fail, it is best to enjoy them unmolested in their native habitat.

Trilliums do produce six-sided, green berry-like fruits from which many seeds can be gathered. However, it can take at least seven and perhaps as long as 15 years for a trillium plant to mature from seed to bloom. Therefore, commercial production of this wildflower from seed is not economical.

Because there is a demand for these plants in wild flower gardens, some nurseries collect them from the wild to resell. The loss of these wild plants may threaten the biodiversity of our forest, and the process should be discouraged by our not purchasing trilliums collected from the wild. These slow-growing wild flowers should be left where found, an area that may also include such a plant as the wonderful pink ladies' slipper.

Look for wild trillium in semi-shaded, forested areas containing rich, damp non-acidic soils. Open forest produces the largest groupings of trillium. They do not grow well in heavy shade. The flowers contain nectar to attract pollinating insects. When ripe, the fruits open slowly and discharge the seeds onto the forest floor. Ants disperse the seeds. The seeds contain an oily surface chemical that attracts ants. The ants carry the seeds to their dens, eat the surface chemical and discard the seeds. Mother Nature does a much better job of propagating trillium than we could ever hope to accomplish. The short dispersal distance is why natural trillium plantings are not spread over large areas. Deer and other woodland animals browse on trillium and repeated heavy browsing over several years will eventually kill trillium. Invasive weeds will also take over trillium beds.

Native Americans discovered that trillium roots had astringent and antiseptic capabilities and used them for treating wounds. A western, red-flowered trillium was considered by the Native Americans as the best medicine, while the white-flowered variety was best for childbirth and menstrual conditions. The Native American medicinal use of trillium spread to early settlers who called it birthroot, papoose (baby) root and squawroot (menstrual). From 1916 to 1947, it was listed as an official medicine in the National Formulary. Picking trillium flowers must be avoided because detaching the stem from the root may cause the plant to die. It has taken several years for the roots to reach bloom size and it would be a shame to end its life early. Trillium tends to produce variations in bloom. Some typical flower variations are pink-ribbed flowers, white with red streaks radiating from the center of the flower, and yellowish flowers. These are not common; at least we have never seen these variations in our woodlot.

There are, as mentioned above, several species of trillium. Some are available from reputable nursery companies. Just be sure when ordering trillium that the plants were not collected from the wild. Trillium roots go very deep and when transplanting them, the soil must be worked deeper than the length of root to be planted. They require rich organic loam. Locate them so they receive early spring sunshine and partial shade as the summer season arrives. Some hardwood trees tend to produce leaves later than others giving trilliums spring sun before the leaf canopy is fully developed.

I do not know why it is our basic human nature to capture, in the case of an animal, or dig it up, in case of a plant, and drag it home rather than leave it in its natural habitat where it may live out its natural life the way Mother Nature intended it to live. Whenever we do these things to nature, it is not always best and the road home is strewn with failures. We try to duplicate the natural in our gardens and some have become very proficient in the process. But, there comes a time when we have to exercise restraint in removing plants from the wild, and trillium is one of those best left where found. With camera in hand, we can take pictures that will add to our own memories of the wonderful experiences in admiring wild flowers where they belong - in the wild for all to enjoy and for years into the future.

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