Trillium luteum, the yellow trillium[3][4] or yellow wakerobin,[5] is a species of flowering plant in the bunchflower family Melanthiaceae with native populations in the Great Smoky Mountains of the United States and surrounding areas.[3]

Trillium luteum
Conservation status
Apparently Secure  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Liliales
Family:	Melanthiaceae
Genus:	Trillium
Species:	T. luteum
Binomial name
Trillium luteum (Muhl.) Harb.
Synonyms[2]
Trillium luteum Trillium sessile var. luteum Muhl. Trillium sessile f. luteum (Muhl.) Peattie Trillium underwoodii var. luteum (Muhl.) J.F.Macbr. Trillium viride var. luteum (Muhl.) Gleason

Description

Growing to 40 cm (16 in) tall by 30 cm (12 in) wide, it is a woodland herbaceous perennial flowering in spring, with lemon yellow scented blooms. The large stalkless triple leaves often have grey-green marbling on the surface. It flowers in April-May beneath the bare branches of deciduous trees.[6] After flowering and setting seed it goes dormant in summer, before appearing again in late winter.

Taxonomy

In 1813, Muhlenberg described the yellow-petaled variety Trillium sessile var. luteum,[7] but the taxon was given specific rank (Trillium luteum) by Harbison in 1901. The latter is distinguished from T. sessile by its larger size, the mottling of its leaves, shorter filaments, the color of its petals, and the character of its stigmas.[8] The specific epithet luteum, which means "yellow",[9] refers to the color of its petals.[10]

Distribution

Trillium luteum is endemic to the southeastern United States. It is native to Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Tennessee.[3][11] It is especially abundant around Gatlinburg, Tennessee.[10] T. luteum has been widely introduced elsewhere, with known populations in Maryland, Michigan, Ontario, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia.[12] (A few disjunct populations of yellow-flowered trilliums in central Alabama have been identified as T. luteum but botanists disagree on this point.[13]) There are hundreds of citizen science observations of T. luteum outside of its natural range, especially in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, and Virginia.[14]

The ranges of T. luteum and T. cuneatum generally do not overlap except in Casey County in southern Kentucky, in southeastern Tennessee, and along the Little Tennessee River on the border between Tennessee and North Carolina. Hybrids will be found along these points of contact, which makes identification difficult.[15][16]

Cultivation

Though hardy down to −15 °C (5 °F), this plant requires a sheltered position with rich, moist leafmould in a shaded, deciduous woodland setting which mimics its native habitat in North American broadleaf forests. It must be left undisturbed to grow into a large colony. It requires some experience to grow successfully, but nevertheless has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[17][18]

Bibliography

• Case, Frederick W.; Case, Roberta B. (1997). Trilliums. Portland, Oregon: Timber Press. pp. 204–208. ISBN 978-0-88192-374-2.
• Freeman, J. D. (1975). "Revision of Trillium subgenus Phyllantherum (Liliaceae)". Brittonia. 27 (1): 1–62. doi:10.2307/2805646. JSTOR 2805646. S2CID 20824379.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Trillium luteum.

• Citizen science observations for Trillium luteum at iNaturalist
• Biodiversity Information Serving Our Nation (BISON) occurrence data and maps for Trillium luteum
• Adams, Alan B. (1975). A Study of Trillium cuneatum and T. luteum (MS). University of Tennessee. Retrieved 23 February 2022.