Trichocolea mollissima is an extremely common wet forest to rainforest plant and is extremely distinctive when dry, especially when they occur as a large whitish-green clump on the forest floor.

Trichocolea rigida is much more uncommon and is found in drier habitats like dry sclerophyll forest. The leaves are also papillose, a feature not seen in T. mollissima.

Little is known of the third species, T. minutifolia.