Trillium
Trinity flower, Wood lily, Wake robin
- Height × spread
- 0.1m – 0.6m × 0.1m – 0.6m
- Position
- Part shade
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
There are about thirty species of these handsome and unusual plants that appear to do things in threes. They are mostly found in north America though a few forms come from Asia. They are woodland plants that flower in spring. They range in height from around 5 cm in height to around 60 cm. They have three large leaves, sometimes mottled, and three petalled flowers that are in shades of white pink red and yellow. Some of the forms carry flowers scented with a musk-like fragrance. If well-suited they can establish substantial colonies, though this is difficult to achieve in cultivation. They need cool positions and rich moist soil.
- Flower colour
- Pink, Purple, Red, White, Yellow
- Foliage colour
- Brown, Green, Red
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- Yes, some varieties
- Shape
- Dome, Round
- Height
- 0.1m – 0.6m
- Spread
- 0.1m – 0.6m
- Season of interest
- Spring, Summer
- Evergreen
- Deciduous
- Garden style
- Shady court, Scented garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes part shade, likes light shade, tolerates dense shade
- Soil type
- Clay, Loam (normal)
- Soil pH
- All types
- Drainage
- Moisture retentive soil, Damp and wet soil, Well drained soil
- Winter hardiness
- Varies, some are not hardy
- Borders & containers
- Borders
- Use for
- Ground cover, Rabbit resistant
- Hazards
- No
Spring
Spring - late · Outdoors
Feed with slow release fertiliser
Apply a general purpose slow release fertiliser, spreading it around the root area of the plant as it is coming into growth. (Or apply a liquid feed at regular intervals throughout the growing season.)
This is a simple way to provide a nutrient boost as a single annual procedure.
Spring-Autumn · Outdoors
Water to keep the soil moist
For best results, this plant needs soil that is always moist. Water deeply and regularly as soon as soil appears dry. Even for established plants in the ground, a dry week can cause problems with some soils. Check plants in pots more often, especially in hot weather. Or install an automatic irrigation system which will do the hard work for you, even when you are away on holiday.
Without regular watering some plants never fully regain their beauty.
Planting & general
Outdoors
Feed & mulch some rose varieties differently
To keep roses healthy and produce more flowers, feed during the growing season before and after flowering. Roses in containers should be fed more often than those planted in the ground, every two weeks from mid spring to late summer. Adding a mulch around the base of a rose will trap moisture and enrich the soil as it biodegrades.
Planting
Divide after flowering
After flowering divide the rhizomes, this needs to be done with care as each part of the rhizome must have a growing bud point or it will fail. Dust the cut surface with fungicide before replanting.
Identifying a bud point: each rhizome has a large shoot at its growing point. Behind these are a number of small pointed buds that stick out between the rhizome's scales, pointing upwards.
Found in
More Trillium
Trillium chloropetalum
Giant trillium, California giant toadshade
Trillium chloropetalum var. giganteum
Giant trillium, California giant toadshade
Trillium cuneatum
Whippoor-will flower, Sweet betsy, Toad shade, Bloody butcher, Cuneate trillium
Trillium erectum
Birth Root, Lambs Quarters, Wet dog, Ground lily, Indian shamrock, American true love
Trillium erectum
Birth root, Lambs quarters, Wet dog, Ground lily, Indian shamrock, American true love
Trillium erectum f. albiflorum
Birth Root, Lambs quarters, Wet dog, Ground lily, Indian shamrock, American true love
Trillium grandiflorum
Trinity flower, White wake robin, American wood lily, Great white trillium
Trillium grandiflorum
Trinity flower, White wake robin, American wood lily, Great white trillium