Cropped Photo of Large-flowered Trillium

The Large-flowered Trillium Trillium grandiflorum is one of the most abundant trilliums in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Trilliums spring from bulbs and have a single upright stalk that has a whorl of three broad bracts (like leaves). Each leaf narrows  to a sharp tip. Above the whorl of bracts is a short stalk called a pedicellate bearing a single flower. The flower has three green or reddish sepals and three white pedals that may start off pink or turn pink to red as it ages. In the center of these white petals are six yellow stamens and three very short yellow stigmas. As can be see the plant lives up to the name "trillium" that means tri-flower.