Viola rotundifolia
Viola hirsutula
early yellow or roundleaf yellow violet, round-leaf violet, roundleaf yellow violet, violette à feuilles rondes
southern woodland violet
basal, 2–5, prostrate to ascending, often overlapping basally;
stipules linear-lanceolate, margins entire, apex acute;
petiole 2–8 cm, pubescent;
blade unlobed, orbiculate, reniform, or ovate, 2–12 × 1.5–9 cm, base cordate, margins crenate to serrate, sometimes glandular, ciliate or eciliate, apex rounded to acute, surfaces usually pubescent throughout or concentrated proximally on both surfaces.
basal, 2–4, prostrate or nearly so;
stipules linear-lanceolate, margins entire, apex acute;
petiole 1–10 cm, usually glabrous;
blade unlobed, reniform to ovate, 1–6 × 1–5 cm, base cordate, margins serrate, ciliate or eciliate, apex rounded, adaxial leaf surface with silvery strigose patches.
1.5–7 cm, usually pubescent.
2–12 cm, glabrous.
sepals lanceolate to ovate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 0.5–1 mm;
petals deep lemon-yellow on both surfaces, lower 3 brownish purple-veined, lateral 2 bearded, lowest 8–11 mm, spur yellow, gibbous, 1–2 mm;
style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on prostrate or partially subterranean rhizomes or on racemelike, nonrooting, and usually leafless branches growing from rhizome apex.
sepals lanceolate to ovate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 1–2 mm;
petals light to deep reddish violet to blue-violet on both surfaces, 3 lower whitish basally, dark violet-veined, lateral 2 densely bearded, lowest 11–17 mm, spur violet, gibbous, 2–3 mm;
style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on prostrate to ascending peduncles.
ellipsoid, 5–10 mm, glabrous.
ellipsoid, 8–12 mm, glabrous.
beige, 1–2 mm.
beige, mottled to bronze, 1–1.5 mm.
= 12.
= 54.
Viola rotundifolia
Viola hirsutula
N. H. Russell (1955b) stated that Viola rotundifolia is a primitive member of Viola and probably one of the ancestral species of stemmed yellow violets of North America. Russell (1965) stated that morphologically, V. rotundifolia is one of the most invariable violets and suggested that its nearest relative is V. orbiculata.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Viola hirsutula exhibits little phenotypic plasticity. Although considered by N. L. Gil-Ad (1997) to be a putative hybrid, he did not identify the potential parents and chose not to recognize it. A. Cronquist in H. A. Gleason and Cronquist (1991) considered V. hirsutula a form of V. villosa. Viola hirsutula is considered one of the more distinct species throughout its range by McKinney because of the pattern of silvery strigose patches on adaxial leaf surfaces and a more prostrate growth habit than similar species. He believes V. hirsutula is one of the least variable species in the flora. Viola hirsutula appears to occur much less frequently than herbarium collections suggest. Some herbarium specimens are misidentified and represent depauperate plants, usually of V. sororia. These specimens are often hairy on the adaxial leaf surfaces but lack the silvery patches.
Viola hirsutula reportedly hybridizes with V. sororia var. sororia (= V. ×cordifolia [Nuttall] Schweinitz) and V. sagittata var. sagittata (= V. ×redacta House).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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