|
Home  /  Plants  /  Budburst Species  /  Trillium grandiflorum

COMMON NAME

large white trillium

SCIENTIFIC NAME

Trillium grandiflorum

ALSO KNOWN AS

white trillium, snow trillium, white wake robin, large-flowered trillium, great white trillium

Plant family

(Melanthiaceae)

Plant group

Wildflowers and Herbs

Large white trillium is a showy understory spring ephemeral that is perennial and native to eastern North America.
972 reports
126+
OBSERVERS
972+
OBSERVATIONS
!

Identification hints

Native to rich woods and thickets of eastern North America, the leaves, petals and sepals all come in groups of three. Flowers are erect, odorless and larger than other species of Trillium.
?

Did you know?

Large white trillium can take years before first flowering. Ants collect seeds of this plant and disburse them by carrying them underground where they eat the fruit and leave behind the seed.
DISTRIBUTION IN TH U.S.
Alabama , Connecticut , Delaware , Georgia , Illinois , Indiana , Kentucky , Massachusetts , Maryland , Maine , Michigan , Minnesota , North Carolina , New Hampshire , New Jersey , New York , Ohio , Pennsylvania , South Carolina , Tennessee , Virginia , Vermont , Wisconsin , West Virginia
HABITAT
Trillium grows in partial shade of woodlands on humus-rich, moist, and sandy loam soil and is found throughout the eastern North America.
ATTRIBUTES
Leaves
Large white trillium has one whorl of three leaves, each oval-shaped with pointed tips, at the top of the stem. Leaves have undulate (wavy) margins, and no petioles (stalks). Leaves are dark green, and have prominent veins that appear engraved into the leaf’s smooth surface.
Flowers
Large white trillium flowers are singular, with three prominent white petals encircling showy yellow anthers. Each flower is about 2 to 3 inches wide. The three large, elliptical petals have pointed tips and wavy edges. Three narrow green sepals poke out between the petals when viewed from the front of the flower. Flowers are odorless.
Fruits
A pale green to white, oval to round berry with a mealy center.
Bloom Time
Large white trillium blooms from May to June and is considered a spring ephemeral.

Do your part for our planet. Join Budburst today.

Stay Informed

Get the latest from Budburst with
our monthly email newsletter.

Get in Touch

Have any questions or new ideas
you'd like to share?

Contact Us

Get the App

Budburst is a project of the
Chicago Botanic Garden

One of the treasures of the
Forest Preserves of Cook County

Creative Commons
BY-NC-SA 4.0

  1. Terms of Use
  2. Privacy Policy
  3. Data Sharing and Citation Policies
  4. 2021 Chicago Botanic Garden. All Rights Reserved.