Your help is appreciated. We depend on donations to help keep this site free and up to date for you. Can you please help us?

Donate

Native Plant Trust: Go Botany Discover thousands of New England plants

Erythronium americanum — American trout-lily

Copyright: various copyright holders. To reuse an image, please click it to see who you will need to contact.

Facts

The mottled leaves of American trout-lily are said to resemble the markings on trout. In most populations, non-flowering individuals outnumber the flowering ones. The Cherokee crushed the warmed leaves and poured the juice over wounds that would not heal.

Habitat

Cliffs, balds, or ledges, forests

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.

North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

enlarge

Characteristics

Habitat
terrestrial
New England state
  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
Leaf arrangement
  • basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
  • opposite: there are two leaves per node along the stem
Leaf blade shape
  • the leaf blade is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
  • the leaf blade is lanceolate (lance-shaped; widest below the middle and tapering at both ends)
  • the leaf blade is ovate (widest below the middle and broadly tapering at both ends)
Leaf blade length
80–230 mm
Flower petal color
yellow
Flower petal length
20–33 mm
Petal fusion
the perianth parts are separate
Inflorescence type
the inflorescence has only one flower on it
Ovary position
the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
Fruit type (specific)
the fruit is a capsule (splits along two or more seams, apical teeth or pores when dry, to release two or more seeds)
Fruit length
12–15 mm
Show all characteristics

  • Clonal plantlets

    Axillary bulblets
    there are no bulblets being produced in axils

  • Flowers

    Anther attachment
    the anther is attached by its base to the filament
    Anther color
    the anthers show no hint of a pink, reddish or purplish tint
    Bulblets replace flowers
    there are no bulblets where the flowers are located
    Carpels fused
    the carpels are fused (the number of carpels equals the number of locules)
    Flower bract length
    0 mm
    Flower bracts
    there are no bracts associated with the flower
    Flower number
    1
    Flower orientation
    the flowers curve or droop downwards
    Flower petal color
    yellow
    Flower petal length
    20–33 mm
    Flower shape
    the flower is another shape
    Flower symmetry
    there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
    Form of style
    the style is lobed at the tip, and unbranched
    Fringed petal edges
    the petals are not fringed
    Hairs on flower stalk
    NA
    Inflorescence hair glands
    the axis of the inflorescence has no hairs on it
    Inflorescence type
    the inflorescence has only one flower on it
    Length of flower stalk
    0 mm
    Length of peduncle
    100–180 mm
    Marks on petals
    the petals have spots or streaks on them
    Nectar spur
    the flower has no nectar spurs
    Number of carpels
    3
    Number of pistils
    1
    Number of sepals and/or petals
    there are six petals, sepals or tepals in the flower
    Number of styles
    1
    Ovary position
    the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
    Petal and sepal arrangement
    the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures
    Petal appearance
    the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)
    Petal base
    the petal narrows gradually or does not narrow at the base
    Petal fusion
    the perianth parts are separate
    Petal hairs on inner/upper surface
    there are no hairs on the inner/upper petal surface
    Sepal appearance
    the sepals resemble petals in color and texture
    Sepal length
    20–33 mm
    Sepal orientation
    the sepals are curved outwards and downwards
    Sepals fused only to sepals
    the sepals are separate from one another
    Spathe
    the plant does not have a spathe
    Spathe form
    NA
    Spathe length
    0 mm
    Stamen length
    9–15 mm
    Stamen number
    6
    Stamen position relative to petals
    NA
    Stamen types
    the stamens within a cycle are distinctly of two types
    Stamens fused
    the stamens are not fused to one another
    Stamens fused outwards
    the stamens are not fused to the petals or tepals
    Style length
    5–11 mm
    Style petal-like
    the style is not broad and flattened like a petal
    Tepals
    the petals and sepals are similar in size and color

  • Fruits or seeds

    Berry color
    NA
    Fruit compartments
    there are three locules in the fruit
    Fruit cross-section
    • the fruit is at least somewhat flattened
    • the fruit is round in cross-section
    Fruit length
    12–15 mm
    Fruit stalk orientation
    the fruits point upward or spread or curve outward
    Fruit type (general)
    the fruit is dry and splits open when ripe
    Fruit type (specific)
    the fruit is a capsule (splits along two or more seams, apical teeth or pores when dry, to release two or more seeds)
    Fruit width
    10–20 mm
    Other markings on berry
    NA

  • Glands or sap

    Sap
    the sap is clear and watery

  • Growth form

    Lifespan
    the plant lives more than two years
    Root septa
    the roots do not have transverse septa
    Underground organs
    the plant has one or more swollen storage organs underground, such as bulbs, tubers or corms

  • Leaves

    Hairs on underside of leaf blade
    the underside of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
    the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Leaf arrangement
    • basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant
    • opposite: there are two leaves per node along the stem
    Leaf blade basal lobes
    the leaf blades do not have basal lobes
    Leaf blade base
    the leaf has a distinct leaf stalk (petiole)
    Leaf blade base shape
    the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow
    Leaf blade bloom
    the underside of the leaf blade has a noticeable waxy or powdery bloom
    Leaf blade cross-section
    the leaf blade is more or less flat in cross-section
    Leaf blade faces
    both surfaces of the leaf blade are exposed
    Leaf blade form
    Fully-formed (i.e., expanded), +/- green leaf blades are found somewhere on the plant
    Leaf blade length
    80–230 mm
    Leaf blade orientation
    the upper surface of the leaf blade faces the stem of the plant
    Leaf blade shape
    • the leaf blade is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the leaf blade is lanceolate (lance-shaped; widest below the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the leaf blade is ovate (widest below the middle and broadly tapering at both ends)
    Leaf blade surface colors
    the upper side of the leaf blade has obvious spots, mottles or stripes
    Leaf blade tip
    the tip of the leaf blade is acute (sharply pointed)
    Leaf blade veins
    the lateral veins are parallel or slightly arched in the direction of the tip
    Leaf blade width
    15–70 mm
    Leaf type
    the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
    Leaflet number
    0
    Stipule twining
    NA
    Stipules
    there are no stipules on this plant

  • Place

    Habitat
    terrestrial
    New England state
    • Connecticut
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
    Specific habitat
    • cliffs, balds, or ledges
    • forests

  • Scent

    Plant odor
    the leaves have no particular smell

  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Flowering stem growth form
    the flowering stem is held upright
    Flowering stem leaves
    there are no true leaves on the flowering stem
    Stem hairs
    the stem is nearly or completely hairless

Wetland status

Not classified

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
present
Maine
present
Massachusetts
present
New Hampshire
present
Rhode Island
present
Vermont
present

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

ssp. americanum

Massachusetts
widespread (S-rank: S5)

Subspecies and varieties

Our subspecies is Erythronium americanum Ker-Gawl. ssp. americanum.

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

2.  Erythronium americanum Ker-Gawl. ssp. americanum N

American trout-lily. CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Mesic deciduous forests, often associated with rich slopes and cliff bases, riparian forests.

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Erythronium albidum:
tepals white and tinged with pink, blue, or lavender abaxially, lacking auricles, and style 15–25 mm (vs. E. americanum, with tepals yellow, the inner with small auricles, and style 5–11 mm long).

Family

Liliaceae

Genus

Erythronium