Do not pick the flowers

text and photos : Norma A. Hubbard  (June 2015)

As a child I have fond memories of our woods filled with white trilliums (Trillium grandiflorum); it was a sea of white and green. It was an impressive sight each spring as these flowers announced the coming of warmer weather. Sadly, I can also recall picking large bouquets of them for my mother because it was only as an adult I realized how damaging this is to these plants.

Trillium grandiflorum belongs to the botanic family of Trilliaceae; several trillium species grow in our area, but Grandiflorum is by the far the showiest and most recognized of the species. It lives up to its name’s sake “large flower”. While there is a rare species of trillium that is pink when it first blooms (Trillium grandiflorum f. roseum), Trillium grandiflorum will fade to a pink as it ages.

Trilliums appear in March and go to the end of May. As these are shade-loving plants, the woods in our area provide ideal conditions for trilliums since these plants prefer well-drained soil in deciduous forests, especially ones with sugar maple and beech trees – both of which grow here. If a forest is clear cut, trilliums will not survive. Currently in Quebec, Trillium grandiflorum is listed as vulnerable due to habitat loss.

A red trillium (Trillium erectum) also known as Wake-Robin, Stinking Benjamin or Beth Root, grows in our area and will appear before the white variety. As the names imply, this is a plant that arrives even before the robins and the red flowers stink, like rotting meat. However, the name Beth Root comes from its use as a medicinal plant. According to Peterson Field Guide, American Natives “used root tea (made from ‘birth plant’) for menstrual disorders, to induce childbirth, aid in labor; for ‘change in life’ (menopause)” among other ailments – anything from coughs to ulcers to snakebites to even diabetes. However, the berries and, to some extent, the roots are considered mildly toxic.

It takes several years for trilliums to cultivate from a seed into a flowering plant. Flies, beetles, but mostly ants are needed for pollination. Seeds are hydrophilic, meaning they need moist conditions to grow. If a seed survives, the first year is spent on root growth, and it is only in the third year of growth that true leaves appear. It will take an additional year or two before flowers will bloom. If a complete plant is picked, it is gone. While most plants will not survive being picked, the odd few might return if there is a well-established rhizome (root system). In addition to habitat loss and to children unknowingly killing plants while picking flowers for their mothers, deer can also contribute to plant loss due to over-eating of flowers as this is one of their favourite food sources in the spring. So while we might be tempted to pick trilliums, it is best to just enjoy them where we see them.

Sources: Peterson Field Guide, Medicinal Plants (1990); Ontario Woodlot Association, Woodland Plants [online]