Viola douglasii
Viola charlestonensis
Douglas' golden violet, Douglas' or Douglas' golden violet, Douglas' violet, Douglas' yellow violet, golden violet
Charleston Mountain or Charleston violet, Charleston Mountain violet
1–3, decumbent or ascending to erect, ca. 1/2 subterranean, glabrous or puberulent, from single, short, vertical, deep-seated caudex.
1–3, prostrate, decumbent, or erect, leafy proximally and distally, 1/2–2/3 subterranean, glabrous or puberulent, on caudex from usually vertical, subligneous rhizome.
basal and cauline;
basal: 1–6, bipinnately compound, leaflets 3–5;
stipules adnate to petiole forming 2 linear-lanceolate wings, unlobed, margins entire, apex of each wing free, acute to acuminate;
petiole 5–6.8 cm, glabrous or puberulent;
blade ovate, 3.5–5 × 2.4–3.5 cm, base tapered, leaflets 3–5-lobed, lobes linear, narrowly elliptic, or oblong, 1–2.5(–5) mm wide, margins entire, usually densely ciliate, apex acute to obtuse, mucronulate, surfaces glabrous or puberulent;
cauline similar to basal except: stipules ovate to linear-lanceolate, margins entire or toothed, apex acute;
petiole 0.9–4 cm;
blade 1.1–4.1 × 1–3.6 cm.
basal and cauline;
basal: 1–3;
stipules adnate to petiole, forming 2 linear-lanceolate wings, margins entire or sparingly lacerate, apex of each wing free, acuminate;
petiole 3.5–13.5 cm, densely short-puberulent;
blade purplish abaxially (often dark purple-veined), grayish adaxially with prominent whitish veins (from dense hairs), usually orbiculate to broadly ovate, sometimes reniform, thick, 1–3.5 × 1.1–3.3 cm, base attenuate or truncate, margins entire, ciliate mostly on proximal half of blade, apex acute to obtuse, mucronulate, surfaces densely short-puberulent;
cauline similar to basal except: stipules deltate to lanceolate, apex acute;
petiole 1.9–3.4 cm;
blade ovate or elliptic to deltate, 0.7–3.1 × 0.6–2.2 cm, length 0.7–1.9 times width, base usually attenuate, sometimes subcordate, margins entire, ciliate.
2–12.5 cm, glabrous or puberulent.
1.7–6.6 cm, pubescent.
sepals lanceolate, margins ciliate, auricles 0.5–1.5 mm;
petals light golden yellow adaxially, upper 2 dark brown to ± black abaxially, lower 3 dark brown-veined, lateral 2 bearded, lowest 8–21 mm, spur dark greenish to dark brown, gibbous, 1.5–2 mm;
style head bearded; cleistogamous flowers absent.
sepals linear-lanceolate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 0.5–1 mm;
petals deep lemon-yellow adaxially, upper 2 usually conspicuously reddish brown to brownish purple abaxially, lateral 2 streaked or solid reddish brown, lower 3 and sometimes upper 2 dark brown-veined proximally, lateral 2 bearded, lowest 8–13 mm, spur usually reddish brown, sometimes yellowish, gibbous, 0.4–2 mm, glabrous or scabrous abaxially;
style head bearded; cleistogamous flowers axillary.
spherical to oblong, 5–12 mm, glabrous.
spherical, 4.5–9 mm, puberulent.
light brown, 2.8–3.3 mm.
black, 3.4–3.5 mm.
= 24, 48.
= 12.
Viola douglasii
Viola charlestonensis
Viola douglasii is tetraploid (n = 12) south of, and octoploid (n = 24) north of, San Francisco Bay, California. It forms sterile hybrids with V. quercetorum (J. Clausen 1964). V. B. Baird (1936) described V. douglasii × purpurea, which Clausen later said was actually V. quercetorum, not described at the time of Baird’s publication.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Viola charlestonensis is known only from the Spring Mountains (previously called Charleston Mountains) in Nevada and Zion National Park, Utah. M. S. Baker (in I. W. Clokey 1945) stated that E. C. Jaeger reportedly collected it at Jacob’s Pool, Arizona, in July 1926. The location of this single Arizona collection may be an error (R. J. Little 2001).
M. S. Baker and J. Clausen (in I. W. Clokey 1945) stated that Viola charlestonensis is the only species in Becker’s Nuttallianae group with the spur pubescent on the exterior. In some populations in the Spring Mountains, Nevada, the spur and the midvein on the abaxial surface of the lowest petal to ± the middle of the lowest petal are covered ± densely with short hairs. Scattered hairs are also present on the abaxial surface of the lateral and upper petals. In other populations in the Spring Mountains, short hairs are mostly absent on the spur, lowest petal, and abaxial surfaces of lateral and upper petals.
M. S. Baker (in I. W. Clokey 1945) commented that he observed numerous sterile flowers and relatively few mature capsules and seeds of Viola charlestonensis plants when he visited the Spring Mountains in June 1937. Similar observations were made of V. charlestonensis plants in the Spring Mountains at one location in 2009 and of three other locations in 2010.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
CA
OR
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
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USDA Plants Database
