Trillium grandiflorum Flore Pleno

Rare and beautiful, Trillium grandiflorum 'Flore Pleno' slowly colonizes the damp undergrowth, showing early double flowers in spring that resemble pure white Gardenias. This beautiful species arches its stems laden with beautiful deciduous foliage, very dark green. Very hardy, this perennial emblematic of northeastern America is a treasure for shade. Sometimes slow to establish, it is nevertheless one of the easiest trillium species to grow in thick humus, protected from the sun's bite. However, it takes time to settle in the garden, even in favourable conditions.

Trillium grandiflorum belongs to the Liliaceae family. This rhizomatous herbaceous perennial is native to the northern and eastern parts of North America, from southern Ontario and Quebec to New England, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. It is a characteristic species of maple forests, which it carpets. 'Flore Pleno' is the very rare double-flowered form. From spring onwards, it forms a tuft 25 to 35cm (10 to 14in) in height, with a minimum spread of 35cm (14in). It slowly spreads in width using its rhizomes, without becoming invasive, until it forms large colonies where it thrives. Initially, a plant produces a few leaves and one or two flowers when it reaches a certain size, and then it spreads regularly. Flowering takes place in March-April, before the leafing of deciduous trees. The upright flowers, 5cm (2in) in diameter, have a very double, highly structured, pure white corolla. They are borne at the end of a stem emerging from the heart of a trilobed leaf, each division of which is ovoid, veined, in a very dark green shade. The flowering is followed by the formation of red berries that blacken when ripe, with seeds dispersed by ants. This plant, slow to establish, can live for several decades.

Also known as Canadian wood lily, Trillium grandiflorum 'Flore Pleno' is primarily a plant of cool undergrowth: it will accompany ferns, cyclamens, Helxines, nodding perennial geraniums, Arisaemas, or Solomon's Seals. It will be most effective in a wild garden, planted in shaded borders or under deciduous trees and bushes. It is also a useful plant for stabilizing the soil on cool shaded slopes, through its long rhizomes.