The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links
Viola flettii

Flett's violet, Olympic violet

evergreen violet, redwood violet

Habit Glabrous perennial from short, thick rhizomes, the stems 3-15 cm. long. Puberulent perennial from scaly rhizomes, with slender, elongate stolons, the aerial stems up two 5 cm. long.
Leaves

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

stipules lanceolate, toothed.

Leaves blades cordate-lanceolate to cordate-ovate, 1-3 cm. broad, thick and leathery, persisting through the winter;

petioles 2-10 cm. long; herbage spotted with tiny purplish blotches;

stipules brownish, lanceolate, membranous, mostly entire.

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 short, saccate;

peduncles exceeding the leaves;

petals lemon-yellow to gold, the lower 3 purplish-penciled, the lateral pair yellow-bearded;

style head short-bearded.

Fruits

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

Fruit a purplish-mottled, 3-valved capsule, ovary superior, placentation parietal, seeds brown.

Viola flettii

Viola sempervirens

Flowering time June-August March-June
Habitat Alpine rock crevices and talus slopes at high elevations. Moist woods from low to middle elevations in the mountains.
Distribution
Occurring west of the Cascades crest in Washington, where endemic to the Olympic Mountains
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Occurring west of the Cascades crest and east in the Columbia River Gorge in Washington; British Columbia to California.
[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. adunca, 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. sheltonii, V. sororia, V. tricolor, V. trinervata, V. ×wittrockiana
Web links