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bird-foot violet

field pansy, violette de Rafinesque, wild pansy

Habit Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 5–30 cm; rhizome thick, fleshy.
Leaves

basal, 4–10, ascending to erect, deeply divided;

stipules linear-lanceolate, margins entire, lacerate, or shallowly divided, apex acute;

petiole 2–12 cm, glabrous or sparsely puberulent;

blade 3–9(–10)-lobed, lobes similar in width and shape, spatulate, lanceolate ± linear, deltate, or ovate, 1–4 × 1–4 cm, base attenuate or broadly cordate to cuneate, margins entire, ciliate or eciliate, apex rounded to usually acute, surfaces usually glabrous, sometimes pubescent on abaxial veins.

Peduncles

5–12 cm, glabrous or pubescent.

1–4.5 cm, glabrous or pubescent.

Flowers

sepals lanceolate, margins mostly ciliate, at least proximally, auricles 1–2 mm;

petals uniformly light to dark blue-violet on both surfaces or upper 2 darker adaxially, sometimes white, upper and lateral 2 often darker basally, lowest, seldom others, dark violet-veined, all beardless, lowest white basally, 12–24 mm, spur white, gibbous, 2–3 mm;

style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers absent.

sepals ovate to lanceolate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 0.5–2 mm;

petals white or cream to pale bluish violet on both surfaces, dark purple-veined, lateral 2 longer than sepals, bearded, lowest 8–10 mm, spur white to blue-violet, gibbous, 1–1.5 mm, shorter than or equaling sepal auricles;

style head bearded; cleistogamous flowers axillary.

Capsules

ellipsoid, 6–10 mm, glabrous.

ellipsoid to oblong, 4–7 mm, glabrous.

Seeds

beige, mottled to brown, 1.4–3 mm.

beige to bronze, 0.3–1.5 mm.

2n

= 56.

= 34.

Viola pedata

Viola bicolor

Phenology Flowering Mar–May.
Habitat Prairies, open woodlands, fields, pastures, roadsides, lawns, waste ground
Elevation 0–3000 m (0–9800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; WI; WV; ON
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; AZ; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MO; MS; NC; NE; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; WV; ON; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Viola bicolor is the only pansy native to North America (V. B. Baird 1942; J. Clausen et al. 1964; A. E. Radford et al. 1968) and is the only annual Viola species that produces cleistogamous flowers (Baird; A. Gershoy 1934). Roots of V. bicolor have the odor of wintergreen when crushed (W. J. Hayden and J. Clough 1990).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Leaf blades 7–9-lobed, lobes spatulate, lanceolate, or ± linear, sometimes with narrowly deltate to falcate appendages toward apex.
var. pedata
1. Leaf blades 3–5(–10)-lobed, lobes deltate or ovate.
var. ranunculifolia
Source FNA vol. 6, p. 143. FNA vol. 6, p. 122.
Parent taxa Violaceae > Viola Violaceae > Viola
Sibling taxa
V. adunca, V. affinis, V. arvensis, V. bakeri, V. beckwithii, V. bicolor, V. biflora, V. blanda, V. brittoniana, V. canadensis, V. canina, V. charlestonensis, V. clauseniana, V. cucullata, V. cuneata, V. douglasii, V. egglestonii, V. epipsila, V. flettii, V. frank-smithii, V. glabella, V. guadalupensis, V. hallii, V. hastata, V. hirsutula, V. howellii, V. japonica, V. labradorica, V. lanceolata, V. langsdorffii, V. lithion, V. lobata, V. macloskeyi, V. missouriensis, V. nephrophylla, V. novae-angliae, V. nuttallii, V. ocellata, V. odorata, V. orbiculata, V. palmata, V. palustris, V. pedatifida, V. pedunculata, V. pinetorum, V. praemorsa, V. primulifolia, V. prionantha, V. pubescens, V. purpurea, V. quercetorum, V. renifolia, V. riviniana, V. rostrata, V. rotundifolia, V. sagittata, V. selkirkii, V. sempervirens, V. septemloba, V. sheltonii, V. sororia, V. striata, V. subsinuata, V. tomentosa, V. tricolor, V. trinervata, V. tripartita, V. umbraticola, V. utahensis, V. vallicola, V. villosa, V. walteri
V. adunca, V. affinis, V. arvensis, V. bakeri, V. beckwithii, V. biflora, V. blanda, V. brittoniana, V. canadensis, V. canina, V. charlestonensis, V. clauseniana, V. cucullata, V. cuneata, V. douglasii, V. egglestonii, V. epipsila, V. flettii, V. frank-smithii, V. glabella, V. guadalupensis, V. hallii, V. hastata, V. hirsutula, V. howellii, V. japonica, V. labradorica, V. lanceolata, V. langsdorffii, V. lithion, V. lobata, V. macloskeyi, V. missouriensis, V. nephrophylla, V. novae-angliae, V. nuttallii, V. ocellata, V. odorata, V. orbiculata, V. palmata, V. palustris, V. pedata, V. pedatifida, V. pedunculata, V. pinetorum, V. praemorsa, V. primulifolia, V. prionantha, V. pubescens, V. purpurea, V. quercetorum, V. renifolia, V. riviniana, V. rostrata, V. rotundifolia, V. sagittata, V. selkirkii, V. sempervirens, V. septemloba, V. sheltonii, V. sororia, V. striata, V. subsinuata, V. tomentosa, V. tricolor, V. trinervata, V. tripartita, V. umbraticola, V. utahensis, V. vallicola, V. villosa, V. walteri
Subordinate taxa
V. pedata var. pedata, V. pedata var. ranunculifolia
Synonyms V. kitaibeliana var. rafinesquei, V. rafinesquei
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 933. (1753) Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 175. (1813)
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