Trillium erectum, also known as red trillium, wake-robin, purple trillium, Beth root, or stinking Benjamin, is a species of flowering plant native to the east and north-east of North America. It is a spring ephemeral, an herbaceous perennial whose life-cycle is synchronised with that of the deciduous forests where it lives. The plant takes its name "wake-robin" by analogy with the robin, which has a red breast heralding spring. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. Varieties * Trillium erectum var. album (Michx.) Pursh * Trillium erectum var. erectum