Trillium undulatum Willd.
Painted trillium
The painted trillium is native to eastern North America. Trilliums are members of the lily family.
Plants: 4–16″ (11–40 cm) high, with dark greenish or maroon stems.
Leaves: A whorl of three leaves forms atop each of the 1-3 stems, 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, 4½–7 ⨉ 3–8″ (12–18 ⨉ 8–20 cm).
Flowers: A flower tops each stem, elevated above the leaves, with three conspicuous white petals tinged with pink near the centers, and large yellow stamens. Each petal is about 1–1½″ (2.5–3.8 cm) long and ½–¾″ (1.3–1.9 cm) wide.
Fruits: ⅜–¾″ (1–2 cm), roughly pear-shaped or shaped somewhat like a prism, and scarlet in color.
Habitats: Mesic, northern hardwoods, mixed conifer-hardwood forests, to pinewoods and high-elevation red spruce forests in the central Appalachian Mountains, in very acidic humus-rich soils.
See also this Trillium comparison table.
Online References:
5/15/2016 · Mt. Watatic, Ashby, Massachusetts 
8/25/2019 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts 
7/30/2010 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State Park, Ashby & Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 11 × 9″ (27 × 22 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
8/4/2017 · Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm) 
5/15/2016 · Mt. Watatic, Ashby, Massachusetts 
5/4/2012 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 4 × 3½″ (11 × 9.2 cm) 
5/18/2018 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4″ (13 × 11 cm) 
8/8/2015 · Mt. Wachusett · ≈ 11 × 7″ (28 × 18 cm) 
5/18/2021 · Cathance River Nature Preserve, Topsham, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm) 
8/4/2017 · Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4″ (13 × 10 cm) 
5/18/2018 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 4½″ (15 × 11 cm) 
5/4/2012 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4½″ (12 × 11 cm) 
4/24/2016 · Blue Trail, Willard Brook State, Ashby, New Hampshire 
5/16/2025 · Center Point Preserve, Bowdoinham, Maine 
8/3/2025 · Saco Heath Preserve, Saco, Maine · ≈ 12 × 8″ (30 × 20 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Liliopsida | Monocots (plants with a single seed leaf); includes the lily family |
| Subclass | Liliidae | Includes lilies, orchids, and many others |
| Order | Liliales | Includes lilies, tulips, trilliums, greenbriars, and others |
| Family | Melanthiaceae | Trillium family |
| Genus | Trillium | “Three-petaled lily” |
| Species | undulatum | Wavy-margined |
Trillium undulatum description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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