Editing Trillium chloropetalum (section)

==Taxonomy==
In 1856, [[John Torrey]] described ''Trillium sessile'' var.&nbsp;''chloropetalum'' based on a specimen collected by [[John Milton Bigelow]] two years earlier in the "redwoods" of California.{{r|IPNI:258380-2|Torrey 1856}} At the time, Bigelow was exploring the valleys and tributaries of the [[Sacramento River|Sacramento]] and [[San Joaquin River|San Joaquin]] rivers, but the precise original location of his specimen remains unknown. In 1903, [[Thomas J. Howell (botanist)|Thomas Jefferson Howell]] described the species ''Trillium chloropetalum'' based on Torrey's variety.{{r|IPNI:542529-1|Howell 1903}} The epithet ''chloropetalum'' means "green-petaled".{{r|Gledhill 2008|p=105}}

In 1975, [[John Daniel Freeman]] published an influential revision of [[Trillium#Subgenus Sessilia|subgenus ''Sessilia'']] that included the description of a new species ''[[Trillium albidum]]'' {{small|J.D.Freeman}} and a completely new circumscription of ''Trillium chloropetalum'' {{small|(Torr.) Howell}}.{{sfnp|Freeman|1975|pp=48-55}} By separating out white-flowered ''T.&nbsp;albidum'', Freeman was able to provide a rational circumscription of ''T.&nbsp;chloropetalum'' that includes the following taxa:

* ''Trillium chloropetalum'' var.&nbsp;''chloropetalum''
* ''Trillium chloropetalum'' var.&nbsp;''giganteum'' {{small|(Hook. & Arn.) Munz}}

The petals of ''T.&nbsp;chloropetalum'' var. ''chloropetalum'' always show yellow pigments but these are often masked by purple or other pigments.{{r|FNA:242102308}} In contrast, the petals of ''T.&nbsp;chloropetalum'' var. ''giganteum'' lack yellow pigments altogether.{{r|FNA:242102309}} The former is characterized by the green-petaled form described by Torrey while the latter includes a white-flowered form of ''T.&nbsp;chloropetalum'' distinguished from ''T.&nbsp;albidum'' by the presence of dark purple stamens and carpels.

Freeman's treatment of ''Trillium chloropetalum'' is widely (if not universally) accepted.{{sfnp|Case|Case|1997|pp=164-170}}{{r|FNA:242101986|POWO:542529-1|USDA:TRCH2}} Some authorities consider ''Trillium chloropetalum'' var.&nbsp;''giganteum'' to be a synonym for ''Trillium chloropetalum'', but even those authorities cite Freeman.{{r|Jepson eFlora}}