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early yellow or roundleaf yellow violet, round-leaf violet, roundleaf yellow violet, violette à feuilles rondes

downy yellow violet, yellow forest violet

Habit Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 1–20 cm; rhizome thick, fleshy. Plants perennial, caulescent, not stoloniferous, 10–45 cm.
Stems

1–3+, ascending to erect, leafless proximally, leafy distally, glabrous or puberulent, from subligneous rhizome.

Leaves

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 and cauline;

basal: 0–4;

stipules ovate to lanceolate, margins entire, coarsely toothed, or crenate, apex acute or obtuse;

petiole 2.7–19.6 cm, lanceolate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 0.1–0.5 mm;

petals lemon-yellow on both surfaces, lower 3 brownish purple-veined, lateral 2 and sometimes others, bearded, lowest 8–18 mm, spur yellow to greenish, gibbous, 1–2.5 mm;

style head bearded; cleistogamous flowers axillary.

Peduncles

1.5–7 cm, usually pubescent.

Flowers

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.

Capsules

ellipsoid, 5–10 mm, glabrous.

ellipsoid, 8–12(–20) mm, glabrous or tomentose.

Seeds

beige, 1–2 mm.

brown, 1.8–3 mm.

2n

= 12.

= 12.

Viola rotundifolia

Viola pubescens

Phenology Flowering Mar–May.
Habitat Rich montane forests and other mesic woodlands
Elevation 200–2000 m (700–6600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CT; DE; GA; KY; MA; MD; ME; NC; NH; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WV; ON; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; WY; MB; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

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.)

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Viola pubescens is similar in overall appearance to V. glabella.

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

Key
1. Stems 1–2, puberulent; basal leaves 0(–1), surfaces usually puberulent.
var. pubescens
1. Stems (2–)3+, glabrous or puberulent; basal leaves 0–4, surfaces glabrous, sometimes sparsely strigose.
var. scabriuscula
Source FNA vol. 6, p. 155. FNA vol. 6, p. 149.
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. 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. 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. 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. pedata, V. pedatifida, V. pedunculata, V. pinetorum, V. praemorsa, V. primulifolia, V. prionantha, 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. pubescens var. pubescens, V. pubescens var. scabriuscula
Synonyms Crocion pubescens
Name authority Michaux: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 150. (1803) Aiton: Hort. Kew. 3: 290. (1789)
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