Yellow Trout Lily

April 2, 2026

So pleased today to come upon a blooming Yellow Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum), native to eastern North America. A plant that grows to 3 to 6 inches tall, with a bloom that is 1 to 3 inches wide. The tiny flower is composed of 6 tepals, which are 3 true petals and 3 petal-like sepals, which bend dramatically backward.

The plant takes 3 to 8 years to mature and produces a flower and 2 leaves. Plants with only 1 leaf are immature or in a crowed environment. Only 1% to 5% of a colony blooms at once.

_______________________

If you would like to receive my daily blog posts by email, sign up here!

Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.