This species is a tetraploid: 2n = 24, versus usually 12 in other eastern species of section Chamaemelanium. Typical canadensis occurs in cool mesic woods on fertile soils, and has a largely northeastern range but extends south to more or less disjunct populations as far as the Ozark-Ouachita region and the Piedmont of s. Ala. (K). A few colls. from Ky. have been named var. corymbosa Nutts. ex Torr. & Gray, which is not recognized in recent treatments, or var. rugulosa (Greene) C.L. Hitchc. Var. rugulosa applies to more western plants of the northern Great Plains, with relatively long rhizomes and broader, hairier leaves, this taxon may deserve species status, but it has been misapplied in Appalachian regions (Ballard et al. 2023). The flowers of V. canadensis are reported to have a distinctive "winter-green" taste (X. Asplen of MADI, pers. comm.).