Yesterday we turned the calendar
to a brand new month. Even though the past few weeks brought
several snowy teasers, there’s no fooling Mother Earth;
wild bulbs tucked underground were preparing for springtime’s
first flower show.
Wildflowers “flush” or bloom in waves, with
the earliest floral species representing the first wave.
April brings a flush of white and pink in the showy western
trillium (Trillium ovatum), accompanied by other early bloomers
such as fawn lilies, swamp lantern, lady’s smock (toothwort)
and bleeding heart.
A large plant, this native species can rise 20-45 centimetres
(8-20 inches) high, with dinner-plate size diameters showing
off one solitary flower. A member of the lily family, trilliums
often bloom alongside pink and white fawn lilies.
The trillium name supposedly derives from the Latin for
three; the plant bears leaves, petals and sepals in whorls
of three, reason enough for its nickname “trinity”
flower. The Latin species name “ovatum” refers
to the trio of egg-shaped leaves.
T. ovatum’s white flowers, once pollinated, gradually
fade to a stunning deep wine colour, thus proving the old
saying that some things do get better with age. It’s
also nature’s way of telling the trillium’s
top pollinators (bees and butterflies) to look elsewhere
for food.
Marjorie Harris, Canada’s foremost gardening writer,
explains that all trilliums are myrmecochorous, meaning
they attract ants (like bleeding heart and wild ginger).
Ants carry away the seed, and then eat the oil organ containing
unsaturated fatty acids. In this way, the ants help trilliums
spread across the forest floor.
Masses of these regal white flowers were first reported
in 1806 by the Lewis and Clark expedition. For centuries,
many First Nations used a solution of the trillium’s
astringent and antiseptic rhizome (root) juice in medicinal
practice.
Trilliums prefer semi-shade and tend to have wet feet so
look for these glorious beauties on the moist forest floor,
seepage areas or alongside streambanks and riversides.
A carpet of fragrant white trilliums is sure to tempt stalkers
of spring wildflowers. Although no native plant is officially
protected in British Columbia at
Do not dig this classic wildflower in the wild; instead,
purchase from a reputable wild plant nursery.
Campbell River – Campbell and Quinsam River trails,
Beaver Lodge Forest Lands, Simms, Willow and Nunns Creeks.
Comox Valley: Puntledge River trails and Nymph Falls trail.
Christine’s trail guides “Nature Campbell River”
and “Nature Strathcona” are available at local
bookstores. E-mail Christine at wilderness@shaw.ca
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