Go native, starting with Trillium grandiflorum for the Southern Ontario garden

Officially, spring arrived a month ago. But in Southern Ontario, late April is when spring really begins. Around our house, that’s when the BBQ starts winning over the stovetop, we can finally sit out on the patio (OK, so we’re still wearing our parkas) for the cocktail hour, and we make a quick weekend trip to the cottage on The Bruce (otherwise known as The Bruce Peninsula) to see the trilliums. By the last week of April, these delicate flowers are in their prime–a rare and lovely sight.

As trends go in gardening, going native just keeps getting hotter. What better way to introduce some natives into your garden than with this gorgeous plant. Yes, as loyal Southern Ontarians, we grew up knowing that picking or transplanting wild trilliums was a no-no. But there are many a legitimate garden nursery who sell trilliums they’ve propagated themselves (as opposed to dug them up in the woods somewhere).

A well-reputed nursery can also offer a selection of trilliums beyond the classic white variety. Humber Nurseries in Brampton, ON, for instance, has six trilliums listed in their online plant database, including the brilliant white Trillium grandiflorum, Ontario’s provincial flower and emblem, as well as purple and yellow varieties.

Here are some quick tips for planting trilliums this spring:

Trilliums are very hardy perennials and will bloom from April to June. They’re great for a wood-landy part of the garden in part shade to shade.

Trilliums go dormant in the summer so plant them with other plants that produce a show then to hide the foliage of the trilliums. Trilliums love rich soil that never dries out. Look to trilliums in the wild for ideas as to how to plant them in your own garden. Trilliums love the dappled sunlight that filters through leafless trees in early spring. Once the leaves are fully out in the trees, the trilliums are dormant. So try planting your trilliums around deciduous trees.

A cautionary note to downtown denizens: Unfortunately, trilliums are country snobs. They hate urban pollution and make their feelings known by dying almost immediately. You’re better off taking in their ephemeral beauty during a walk in a park or a hike in the woods.