Again, this early spring, I’m delighted by the increased number of trilliums appearing in the garden. A year ago, I first noticed ones coming up where I was certain none were planted, and now there are more as well as new seedlings beside parent plants. The youngsters are a few years from flowering, but what a pleasant surprise.

I’ve long forgotten the sources from which the various trilliums were purchased, and thankfully, I planted a number of species. I am continually tempted to expand the small collection, but the yearly increases are the deciding factor in saving the expense of purchasing young plants.

I am inspired viewing trilliums as Barbara and I hike nearby mountain trails with ones at low elevations flowering the same week as here in the garden (the second week of April). We are fortunate to have discovered another local trail where thousands (maybe millions) of white trilliums (Trillium grandiforum, below) flower the first week of May.

Alongside the native trilliums grow another ephemeral favorite, mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum), and again, the numbers in the garden have slowly increased. Rather than obtaining these commercially, native mayapples were transplanted from the edge of the forest that borders the garden.