Trillium flexipes |
Trillium rugelii |
|
---|---|---|
bent trillium, declined trillium, drooping trillium, nodding wakerobin |
illscented wakerobin, southern nodding trillium |
|
Rhizomes | somewhat erect, thick, praemorse. |
short, thick, tapered to point distally. |
Scapes | 1–several from single rhizome, round in cross section, 2–5 dm, glabrous. |
1–3, round in cross section, 1.5–4 dm, robust, glabrous. |
Bracts | sessile; blade medium green without red or maroon undertones, rhombic, 7–25 × 7–25 cm, frequently wider than long, base attenuate from just above middle, apex acuminate. |
sessile to subsessile; blade bright green, veins not engraved, rhombic, broader than long, 6–15 × 6–16 cm, not glossy, base attenuate, apex acuminate. |
Flower | flexed ca. 90° on summit of pedicel to face outward rather than upward, or variously carried on strongly declined pedicels; sepals weakly recurved, green, lanceolate, 14–45 mm, shorter than or barely equaling petals, margins entire, apex acuminate; petals flat or recurved in distal 1/2, creamy white, not 2-colored, veins conspicuously engraved, ovate-lanceolate to broadly ovate, 2–5 × 1–4 cm, texture heavy, margins entire, apex acute; stamens large, ± erect, 9–23 mm; filaments white, less than 1/2 anther length, thin; anthers straight or very slightly recurving, creamy white or yellow, 5–18 mm, thick, dehiscence ± introrse; ovary white, ovoid to flask-shaped, strongly 6-angled, 5–16 × 4–12 mm, widely attached basally; stigmas recurved, distinct but closely grouped, white, not lobed adaxially, linear-subulate, short, thick, 4–13 mm, ± equaling ovary, fleshy; pedicel stiffly erect, carried horizontally, or declined beneath bracts, rarely recurved, 4–12 cm. |
strongly recurved below bracts; sepals shorter than petals and somewhat obscured by them, spreading, green, very rarely streaked with red, lanceolate-elliptic, 15–40 × 7–17 mm, margins entire, apex acuminate; petals recurving in distal 1/2 in most forms (forms from Alabama with petals slightly narrower and strongly recurved just above base), white, rarely 2-colored with base rose or dark purple and white, adaxial veins conspicuous, broadly ovate-elliptic, 2.5–5 × 0.8–3.5 cm, heavy-textured, margins entire, without undulations, apex abruptly acuminate; stamens ± straight, 8–18 mm; filaments deep purple, 2–8 mm, slender; anthers ± straight, dark purple, 12–16 mm, thin, dehiscence introrse; connectives not extended beyond anther sacs; ovary prominent, purple-streaked or maroon distally or throughout, flask-shaped, 6-angled, 14–17 mm, widely attached at base; stigmas recurved, distinct, dark purple, not lobed adaxially, subulate, 2–5 mm, fleshy; pedicel strongly recurved beneath bracts, 1–7+ cm. |
Fruits | baccate, rosy red to purplish, fragrant of ripe fruit, ovoid to somewhat pyramidal at summit, strongly angled, 2–3.5 × 1–3 cm, very juicy at maturity. |
baccate, dark reddish purple, fragrance faintly of fruit, ovoid to orbicular, 1.7 × 2 cm, fleshy, juicy. |
2n | = 10. |
= 10. |
Trillium flexipes |
Trillium rugelii |
|
Phenology | Flowering spring (Apr–early Jun). | Flowering mid spring (mid Apr–May). |
Habitat | Rich wooded slopes, floodplains in deciduous forests, especially over limestone | Deciduous forest hillsides and coves, inner piedmont, mostly in alluvial soils along stream banks and flats |
Elevation | 100–600 m (300–2000 ft) | 200–700 m (700–2300 ft) |
Distribution |
AL; DE; IA; IL; IN; KY; MI; MN; MO; NY; OH; PA; SD; TN; VA; WI; WV; ON
|
AL; GA; NC; SC; TN
|
Discussion | Although there are no named varieties of Trillium flexipes, many forms exist and at least one has been named, forma walpolei (Farwell) Fernald. F. W. Case and G. L. Burrows (1962) mapped the occurrence of forma walpolei for Michigan and found it to occur only along the contact zone between T. flexipes and T. erectum. F. W. Case and R. B. Case (1993) crossed typical T. erectum and T. flexipes to produce identical color variations as occur in these wild, mixed-species populations. I consider this form to be a hybrid expression. Some of the hybrids have petals colored proximally and white distally, superficially resembling T. undulatum. Dried specimens, when hastily examined, resemble T. undulatum superficially and probably account for reports of that species from locations near Ann Arbor, Michigan, and various places in Indiana and Illinois, all of which are well out of the range of T. undulatum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
The Alabama plants of Trillium rugelii differ from those in the Great Smoky Mountains region in having usually smaller bracts, narrower ovate petals strongly recurved from the base, and strongly fragrant flowers with the odor of old-fashioned garden roses. The anther color and structure are the same as in the mountain form. Hybrids between T. vaseyi and T. rugelii occur frequently. Trillium rugelii has been much confused with T. cernuum in past floras, and it is the taxon upon which most reports of T. cernuum south of Virginia are based. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 26, p. 99. | FNA vol. 26, p. 103. |
Parent taxa | Liliaceae > Trillium > subg. Trillium | Liliaceae > Trillium > subg. Trillium |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | T. declinatum, T. gleasonii | |
Name authority | Rafinesque: Autik. Bot., 133. (1840) | Rendle: J. Bot. 39: 331, plate 426, fig. B1901 (as rugeli) |
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