Trillium sessile

Description

Trillium sessile, or Red Toad, is a graceful, spring perennial with a fragrant, deep red flower that never fully opens. The flower forms a spike and sits atop three gray-green mottled leaves, with the whole plant reaching a height of 12 inches. Red Toad prefers shaded, rich, well-drained soil that remains moist. The clump-forming plant makes an attention-grabbing addition to your shaded, woodland garden. Trilliums like Red Toad rely on ants for seed dispersal. They carry away the seeds, eating the large oily elaiosomes to leave just the seeds behind to grow.

Did you know Trilliums are slow to develop due to their slow period of active growth in spring? It can take up to 10 years for a plant to reach flowering size in the wild.

Trillium sessile is also known as Toadshade.