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giant trillium, giant white wakerobin, sessile trillium, smallflower trillium, white toadshade

sweet beth, sweet trillium, sweet wakerobin, Vasey's trillium

Rhizomes

horizontal, ± erect, brown, superficially bulblike, short, thick, not brittle.

short, stout, praemorse.

Scapes

often several from same rhizome terminus, round in cross section, 2.2–5.8 dm, stout.

1–2 per rhizome terminus, round in cross section, 3–6.5 dm, ± slender to stout, glabrous.

Bracts

held well above ground, sessile;

blade weakly mottled with scattered, darker green spots, mottling often fading later in season, broadly ovate, 10–20 × 12–15 cm, not glossy, base rounded, apex obtuse.

sessile to subsessile;

blade rhombic, 10–20 × 6–20 cm, often wider than long, not glossy, base attenuate, apex acuminate.

Flower

borne directly upon bracts, erect, fragrance roselike;

sepals conspicuous, spreading, displayed above bracts, pale green, lanceolate, 30–65 × 12–15 mm, margins entire, apex acute;

petals long-lasting, usually erect or slightly spreading, ± connivent, ± concealing stamens and ovary basally, white to creamy white, rarely soft pinkish rose near base, veins prominent but not engraved, not spirally twisted, obovate, more lanceolate in young plants, 4.8–8 × 2.2–3 cm, widest at or just above middle, ± thick-textured, base cuneate, margins entire, ± flat, apex rounded to acute;

stamens erect, greenish white, 15–25 mm;

filaments whitish green, 3–4 mm, slender;

anthers erect, straight, yellow, 11–20 mm, dehiscence latrorse;

connectives straight, extended ca. 1 mm beyond anther sacs, rounded;

ovary green or occasionally purple, ovoid, rounded 6-gonal, 6–11 mm;

stigmas erect to spreading, distinct, sessile, subulate, 4–7 mm, thin distally.

carried beneath bracts, odor faintly sweet;

sepals spreading, pale green, lanceolate-acuminate, 25–50 × 6–18 mm, margins involute, apex acuminate;

petals spreading to recurved distally, adaxially crimson, maroon-red, or brownish red, abaxially paler, grayish pink or rose, veins engraved, ovate-suborbicular, 3–6.5 × 4–6 cm, somewhat fleshy, base rounded and overlapping, margins entire, apex acute;

stamens conspicuous, ± erect to weakly recurved, 15–25 mm, longer than pistil at anthesis;

filaments grayish purple to blackish purple, longer than anthers, 5–12 mm, slender;

anthers weakly recurving, grayish purple to maroon, slender, dehiscence introrse;

connectives purple, barely equaling anther sacs;

ovary small, maroon or dark reddish purple, ± globose to conical-pyramidal, 6-ridged, 3–12 mm, basal attachment less than ovary width;

stigmas erect, recurved, distinct, gray-purple, not lobed adaxially, basally widened, ± linear distally, 2.5–6.5 mm, fleshy;

pedicel horizontal to declined-drooping, ± straight, 2–13 cm.

Fruits

green or purplish green, fragrance unknown, ovoid to globose, pulpy, juicy.

dark reddish maroon, ovoid, obtusely angled, relatively small, 1–1.4 × 1–2 cm, pulpy.

2n

= 10.

Trillium albidum

Trillium vaseyi

Phenology Flowering spring (mid Mar–late Apr). Flowering mid–late spring (late Apr–early Jun).
Habitat Moist slopes in rich mixed deciduous-coniferous forests or coniferous stands, brushy thickets on flats, open fields, pastures, and fencerows, dense second-growth coniferous forests, floodplains along streams and larger rivers Rich woods, often on steep slopes, ravines, stream banks, and deep, wind-sheltered, moist coves
Elevation 100–200 m (300–700 ft) 300–700 m (1000–2300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; GA; NC; SC; TN
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Although sometimes submerged within Trillium erectum, T. vaseyi has a later blooming season, a nodding flower of much larger size, a sweet fragrance, and cove habitat unlike that of T. erectum. In my garden hybridization experiments, T. vaseyi hybrids have different color patterns than T. erectum hybrids. Trillium vaseyi is clearly a distinct species. It frequently hybridizes with T. rugelii.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 26, p. 106. FNA vol. 26, p. 105.
Parent taxa Liliaceae > Trillium > subg. Phyllantherum Liliaceae > Trillium > subg. Trillium
Sibling taxa
T. angustipetalum, T. catesbaei, T. cernuum, T. chloropetalum, T. cuneatum, T. decipiens, T. decumbens, T. discolor, T. erectum, T. flexipes, T. foetidissimum, T. gracile, T. grandiflorum, T. kurabayashii, T. lancifolium, T. ludovicianum, T. luteum, T. maculatum, T. nivale, T. ovatum, T. parviflorum, T. persistens, T. petiolatum, T. pusillum, T. recurvatum, T. reliquum, T. rivale, T. rugelii, T. sessile, T. simile, T. stamineum, T. sulcatum, T. underwoodii, T. undulatum, T. vaseyi, T. viride, T. viridescens
T. albidum, T. angustipetalum, T. catesbaei, T. cernuum, T. chloropetalum, T. cuneatum, T. decipiens, T. decumbens, T. discolor, T. erectum, T. flexipes, T. foetidissimum, T. gracile, T. grandiflorum, T. kurabayashii, T. lancifolium, T. ludovicianum, T. luteum, T. maculatum, T. nivale, T. ovatum, T. parviflorum, T. persistens, T. petiolatum, T. pusillum, T. recurvatum, T. reliquum, T. rivale, T. rugelii, T. sessile, T. simile, T. stamineum, T. sulcatum, T. underwoodii, T. undulatum, T. viride, T. viridescens
Synonyms T. erectum var. vaseyi
Name authority J. D. Freeman: Brittonia 27: 48, fig. 11. (1975) Harbison: Biltmore Bot. Stud. 1: 24. (1901)
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