Trillium erectum L.

Red trillium, purple trillium, stinking Benjamin

Red trillium is native to North America.

Plants: Plants have one to two round stems, are 1–2′ (30–60 cm) high, and are found on forest floors.

Leaves: A whorl of three leaves forms atop each stem, each leaf facing straight upward, with a single flower emerging from the center. Leaves are oval or diamond-shaped in shape, wider at the base, tapering to pointed tips, and with even edges.

Flowers: Usually maroon, but may also be a brighter red, white, or greenish yellow. They have three true petals and three petal-like bracts, arranged to look like a six-petaled flower. These flowers are sometimes called stinking benjamin or stinking willie because they smell like a wet dog. The odor attracts flies that pollinate the plants.

Fruits: Dark maroon in color, smelling faintly of fruit, rounded to slightly pyramid-shaped, ⅜–½″ (1–1.5 cm) around.

Habitats: On acid soils, in open dry or rich mesic woods, within laurel and rhododendron thickets at mid to high elevations.

See also this Trillium comparison table.

Edibility: Poisonous The leaves contain needle-like calcium oxalate crystals called raphides, part of the plant’s defense.

Online References:

Older scientific or horticultural names

Trillium erectum description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.

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