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Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Trillum

 
 I spent Mother's Day with my mom and other family members and we did what we do best. 

We picnicked!

We also went for a day long drive, revisiting childhood haunts and soaking up beautiful countryside scenery. Countryside, I may add, that beckoned to me when I was wee thing growing up in the city and formed the basis of what I consider the most idyllic place to live. It's an hour or so more by car, from the old farmhouse but the landscape is in many ways, very different from this area, perhaps because it is situated so close to the Great Lakes. 

As we neared the banks of Lake Erie, we drove through a wooded area, just loaded with trillium. They are out in full force right now and as my mom and I wondered if the car was ever going to stop, it finally did and we hopped out as fast as we could before anyone could change their mind. 

My mom knows all of the wildflower names and she was pointing them out to me left, right and centre. The area, of course, abounded with white trillium as far as the eye could see but as my mom pointed out more and more flowers and I happily snapped away, stupidly trusting myself to remember their names, I stumbled upon something she missed.

These lovely red trillium. Very rare, at least in comparison to the white variety. I've seen the odd one in a shade of soft pink but this was the first time I had discovered a red trillium in the wild. It was beautiful, breathtaking and my grandma who always preferred flowers out of doors over a cut bouquet in the house would have been most delighted to see it too. 

And here's some interesting tidbits about the trillium. It is a member of the lily family and is the official flower of the province of Ontario and the official wildflower of Ohio. As school children, we were told it was illegal to pick the trillium, but they are only protected in provincial parks and conservation authority lands. The name trillium is derived from the Latin word for three because of its three leaves. And by picking the flower, you seriously debilitate the plant from producing enough food for the following year. So tell me, are trillium blooming in your neck of the woods right now?

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~Be well friends~
 





16 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

I loved these flowers in the woods of Wisconsin where I grew up. We were told it was illegal to pick them too. Sadly they don't grow here this far south in Texas and I miss them. They bring back the sights and sounds and smells of the Wisconsin woods for me...

Buttons Thoughts said...

Andrea that would have been so special to see this with your Mom. I love the red trillium, their rarity gives you more reason to pause and take in their beauty. Nice post. B

Osage Bluff Quilter said...

What a great Mother's Day you girls had.

I don't remember seening those flowers in Missouri.

Blessings
Patti

Nancy said...

Very pretty! :)

~from my front porch in the mountains~ said...

And did you wave while you were on the banks of Lake Erie? My Mom said she thought she heard you and yours stomping around out there!

Hugs to your Mom. Without her~there would be no YOU!
Lylas!

Judy said...

I love, love, trillium's!

Unknown said...

Gorgeous texture and tones!

Chris at Red Gate Farm said...

Sounds like you had a great time! And yes, we have trillium in Washington too :)

~Chris

Linda said...

Really nice texture work!!

Sherrie said...

Hi!
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. The flower is beautiful! Have a great day!

Sherrie
Food for Thought

Unknown said...

Lovely photos, and great texture. I really need to sit and learn how to use textures. Thanks for the kind comments.

Fishtail Cottage said...

Beauiful photo's of your trillium! Thanks for linking your post to Cottage Flora Thursday's xoox, tracie

Michelle said...

Great color tones in these shots.

Elle Bee said...

Oh you brought back some memories. I went to Humboldt State University in Northern California, and we had white trillium all over. So beautiful. I have never seen that gorgeous deep red variety--wow!

Cheryl said...

I've never heard of a red trillium, beautiful!

Paula said...

I have never heard of or seen a red trillium - it is lovely! Thank you for sharing! Paula from Idaho