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Viola flettii

Flett's violet, Olympic violet

early blue violet, wild dog violet

Habit Glabrous perennial from short, thick rhizomes, the stems 3-15 cm. long. Glabrous to densely puberulent perennial from slender rhizomes, from stemless to 10 cm. tall.
Leaves

Leaves fleshy, petiolate, purplish-green, the blades reniform, 1.5-4 cm. broad, finely round-toothed;

stipules lanceolate, toothed.

Leaves short- to long-petiolate, the blade cordate-ovate to lance-ovate, with fine, rounded teeth, 1-3 cm. long;

stipules liner-lanceolate, 3-10 mm. long, entire to remotely slender-toothed.

Flowers

Flowers 1.5 cm. long, the spur very short, yellow;

petals purplish-violet, yellow at the base, the lower 3 dark-veined, the lateral pair yellow-bearded;

style head well bearded.

Flowers 5-15 mm. long, the spur on the lowest petal slender, over half the length of the petal;

petals blue to deep violet, the lower three with a whitish base penciled in violet, the lateral pair white-bearded;

style head bearded with thick hairs. Some flowers also cleistogamous (do not open up but do self-pollinate and produce seed).

Fruits

Fruit a 3-valved capsule, ovary superior, placentation parietal.

Fruit a 3-valved capsule, ovary superior, placentation parietal.

Viola flettii

Viola adunca

Flowering time June-August April-August
Habitat Alpine rock crevices and talus slopes at high elevations. Dry to moist meadows and open woods, from the lowlands to subalpine areas.
Distribution
Occurring west of the Cascades crest in Washington, where endemic to the Olympic Mountains
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Widely distributed on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east across North America to the Atlantic Coast.
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Origin Native Native
Conservation status Review Group 1 in Washington (WANHP) Not of concern
Sibling taxa
V. adunca, V. arvensis, V. canadensis, V. glabella, V. howellii, V. lanceolata, V. langsdorffii, V. macloskeyi, V. nephrophylla, V. nuttallii, V. odorata, V. orbiculata, V. palustris, V. pluviae, V. purpurea, V. renifolia, V. riviniana, V. selkirkii, V. sempervirens, V. sheltonii, V. sororia, V. tricolor, V. trinervata, V. ×wittrockiana
V. arvensis, V. canadensis, V. flettii, V. glabella, V. howellii, V. lanceolata, V. langsdorffii, V. macloskeyi, V. nephrophylla, V. nuttallii, V. odorata, V. orbiculata, V. palustris, V. pluviae, V. purpurea, V. renifolia, V. riviniana, V. selkirkii, V. sempervirens, V. sheltonii, V. sororia, V. tricolor, V. trinervata, V. ×wittrockiana
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