''Trillium flexipes'', known as the nodding wakerobin, bent trillium, or drooping trillium, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Melanthiaceae Melanthiaceae, also called the bunchflower family, is a family of flowering herbaceous perennial plants native to the Northern Hemisphere. Along with many other lilioid monocots, early authors considered members of this family to belong to the ...

. It is found from

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, south to

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, with isolated (and sometimes rare) populations in

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, and other states. It is an endangered species in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

and possibly extirpated in

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Description

''T. flexipes'' is a

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

that spreads by means of underground

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

s. In northern areas, the flower tends to hang below the leaves, while central and southern strains have a large erect flower. The flower petals are normally white but can be reddish or maroon. The fruit is rosy red to purplish and fragrant of ripe fruit. ''T. flexipes'' is known to hybridize with other ''Trillium'' species. In particular, hybrids between ''T. flexipes'' and ''T. erectum'' can occur. Indeed, the red-petaled forms of ''T. flexipes'' tend to occur in regions where the ranges of both species coincide. Hybridization is also suspected between ''T. flexipes'' and ''T. sulcatum''.

Bibliography

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References

External links

*
Biodiversity Information Serving Our Nation (BISON) occurrence data and maps for ''Trillium flexipes''
flexipes Plants described in 1840 Flora of Eastern Canada Flora of the Northeastern United States Flora of the Southeastern United States Flora of the North-Central United States Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque {{Liliales-stub