Hansen's Northwest Native Plant Database

Trilliums are the most beautiful of all native flowers and this one is the common trillium of the northwest.

Single stalks bear three large leaves.

Close to Easter, a large white flower with three petals opens from a small stem above the leaves. As it ages, the flower becomes a pleasing purple.

These flowers are small miracles of nature, requiring seven years to grow from seed to flower.

Found along the Pacific coast and inland throughout the Rocky Mountains (USDA 5-8), Western Trillium grows at low elevations and often along streams or seasonal waterways.

It will appreciate shade and rich soil.

"I stuck my car in a mud hole one time, and when I walked around it to see what the lesson of the day was going to be I was somehow transported into a magical glade of maple trees. They were about half grown so there was light shade with an occasional sunray slipping in when a breeze lifted a leaf--you know what I mean. The ground beneath these 20-year-old youngsters was completely covered with trillium. Never having seen one in person before, I stood quietly in awe and reverence of such a beautiful vision. I saw neither elves or faeries but I am sure they were nearby."