Viola odorata |
Viola subsinuata |
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English violet, garden violet, sweet blue violet, sweet violet, violette odorante |
early blue violet, wavy-leaf violet, wood violet |
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Habit | Plants perennial, acaulescent, stoloniferous, 4–12 cm; stolons green, often rooting at nodes and forming leafy rosettes; rooted rosettes often develop into erect, rhizomatous caudex from which new stolons are produced; rhizome thick, fleshy. | Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 10–30 cm; rhizome thick, fleshy. |
Leaves | basal (and from stolons), 5–10, ascending to erect; stipules lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, margins fimbriate, projections gland-tipped, apex acute; petiole 2–17 cm, puberulent; blade unlobed, ovate to orbiculate, 1.5–7 × 1.5–5 cm, base cordate, margins crenate, ciliate, apex obtuse to rounded, surfaces puberulent. |
basal, 2–11, ascending to erect; stipules linear-lanceolate, margins entire, apex acute; petiole 5–25 cm, glabrous or pubescent; mid-season leaf blades incised or lobed throughout, earliest leaf blades lobed (plants homophyllous), similar to mid-season blades, blade 5–9(–16)-lobed, sinuses usually narrower, shallower toward leaf base, middle and lateral blade lobes differ in width and/or shape, middle lobes narrowly deltate to narrowly elliptic, lateral lobes narrowly elliptic, lanceolate, or falcate, 1–11 × 1–12 cm, base truncate to cordate, margins entire or crenate, ciliate or eciliate, apex acute, mucronulate, surfaces usually pubescent throughout or on veins. |
Peduncles | 4–15 cm, puberulent. |
5–15 cm, glabrous or pubescent. |
Flowers | sepals narrow to broadly lanceolate, margins ciliate, auricles 3–4 mm; petals deep to pale blue-violet, pale blue, or white on both surfaces, usually white basally, lateral 2 sparsely to densely bearded, lowest usually purple-veined, 12–22 mm, spur usually same color as petals, elongated, 5–7 mm; style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on prostrate or ascending peduncles. |
sepals lanceolate to ovate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 1–2 mm; petals light to dark blue-violet on both surfaces, lower 3 and upper 2 sometimes purple-veined, lateral 2 bearded, lowest sometimes bearded, 15–25 mm, spur color same as petals, gibbous, 2–3 mm; style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on prostrate to ascending peduncles. |
Capsules | sometimes purple-flecked, ovoid, 5–8 mm, puberulent. |
ellipsoid, 8–12 mm, glabrous. |
Seeds | brown, 3–4 mm. |
beige, mottled to bronze, 1.5–2.5 mm. |
2n | = 20. |
= 54. |
Viola odorata |
Viola subsinuata |
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Phenology | Flowering Jan–May. | Flowering Apr–Jun. |
Habitat | Lawns, roadsides, clearings, riparian habitats, parks, urban areas | Rich woods |
Elevation | 0–1700 m [0–5600 ft] | 100–3000 m [300–9800 ft] |
Distribution |
CA; CT; ID; IL; MA; ME; MI; NC; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; UT; WA; WI; BC; NS; ON; QC; Eurasia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Australia]
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CT; DC; DE; GA; IL; KY; MA; MD; MI; NC; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WI; WV; ON
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Discussion | Viola odorata occurs in small colonies; individual plants are interconnected by stolons. The flowers of Viola odorata are noted for their fragrance; some plants are more fragrant than others. It is native to Eurasia and assumed to be introduced in North America where it is usually found in areas associated with human habitation, including parks, lawns, and roadsides. A substantial industry revolved around the commercial production of violets in England, France, and the United States from prior to 1895 and into the 1900s (R. E. Coombs 2003). Viola odorata is sometimes found in remote locations not easily explained by anthropogenic influence, for example, Clearwater Mountains, Idaho. It is available through the nursery trade and is cultivated as a garden plant and occasionally reported as an escape. Viola odorata is grown in southern France for essential oils used in perfumes, flavorings, and toiletries, and also for the production of the sweet, violet-colored liqueur called parfait amour (V. H. Heywood 1978). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
L. E. McKinney (1992) described the misconceptions surrounding Viola subsinuata that many came to think of as the heterophyllous V. palmata, whereas V. subsinuata is homophyllous. As E. Brainerd (1910, 1921) pointed out, heterophylly versus homophylly is an important and steadfast character difference in acaulescent Viola species. N. L. Gil-Ad (1997) chose not to recognize V. subsinuata, suggesting that it represented a hybrid or introgressant. H. E. Ballard (2000) and A. Haines (2011) both recognized V. subsinuata as a species. Viola subsinuata is a state historical species in Rhode Island, where it was last documented in 1941 (R. W. Enser, http://rinhs.org/wp-content/uploads/ri_rare_plants_2007.pdf). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 6, p. 140. | FNA vol. 6, p. 159. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | V. emarginata var. subsinuata, V. palmata var. angelliae | |
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 934. (1753) | (Greene) Greene: Pittonia 4: 4. (1899) |
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