Yellow Trillium Common Name: Yellow Trillium Botanical Name: Trillium luteum Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art · White Trillium Collection Transcript Read More A LARGE TRILLIUM COLLECTION TRANSCRIPT NARRATOR: The Trillium collection at Crystal Bridges is among the largest and most diverse in the nation. Horticulturalist Cody George discusses the care required in cultivating Trillium and the ongoing development of the museum’s collection. CODY GEORGE: The Trillium collection at Crystal Bridges, we first started in 2011. We first started out with four species, and now we’ve grown to ten different species of Trillium. We have two species that are native to this region of the Ozarks, and the rest of the Trillium collection is native to either the Eastern United States or to the Southeast United States. Our Trillium collection, although it is vast, we still plan on adding a few different species of Trillium to our collection. Of course, these species will be zone hardy and heat hardy to our region so that we can ensure that these plants will grow better. Notes will be taken and we will have some field trials to determine which ones grow better, not only in our region, but in the soil that we have and the climate that we have. A field trial is a part of a bed that is dedicated to a certain type of a plant that we watch over, that we take notes on, and that way we can see with some of these different collections, which ones are more superior in which ones will do better in this climate. [Trillium grandiflorum,] or the white Trillium, is the plant that first caught my eye and really took off my passion for native plants. From seed it takes nine years to bloom. So these are plants that require a lot of attention to detail, attention to the climate, attention to the soil. So they’re quite specific to growing conditions, especially the ones that are not native to the Ozarks. And so they’re just a wonderful addition to a garden because they bloom for a short amount of time in the spring, although some species, they will alter. So we’ve played around with species, so we can start blooming in March and around mid-May, and alternating between different species of Trillium. Yellow Trillium Plant family: Liliaceae Location: Tulip Tree Trail Growing zone: 4-8 Height: 6-12 in. Spread: 12-16 in. Bloom time: March, April, May Bloom description: Three yellow petals sit on the center of three mottled leaves. The citrus-scented petals encompass the flower parts. Leaf type: The three leaves are heavily mottled with colors of silver and green. Garden uses: Yellow Trillium is another easy-to-grow Southeastern United States Trillium. It prefers rich, woodland conditions with light shade. A good selection to use as a mass planting in a woodland garden; however, one should also use non-aggressive native woodland wildflower companion plants because Trilliums are spring ephemeral. Wildlife benefits: Provides shelter for small mammals and amphibians. Ants eat a fleshy substance, known as an elaiosome, off the seeds and help distribute the seeds when taken back to the colony.
