Viola sororia |
Viola pedata |
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common blue violet, common or downy or woolly blue violet, northern blue violet, northern violet, northern woodland violet, violette parente, woolly blue violet |
bird-foot violet |
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Habit | Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 5–50 cm; rhizomes thick, fleshy. | Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 5–30 cm; rhizome thick, fleshy. | ||||
Leaves | basal, 1–8, ascending to erect; stipules linear-lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, margins entire, sometimes glandular distally, apex acute; petiole 2–25 cm, pubescent or glabrous; blade green abaxially, unlobed, ovate or broadly ovate to reniform, 2–5 × 2–10 cm, not fleshy, base cordate, margins crenate to serrate, ciliate or eciliate, apex acute to obtuse or rounded, surfaces usually pubescent, rarely glabrous. |
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. |
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Peduncles | 3–25 cm, glabrous or sparsely pubescent. |
5–12 cm, glabrous or pubescent. |
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Flowers | sepals lanceolate to ovate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 1–2 mm; petals light to dark blue- or dark purple-violet, reddish purple, or rarely white on both surfaces, usually white basally, lowest and sometimes lateral 2 purple-veined, lateral 2 bearded, lowest bearded or beardless, 15–25 mm, spur same color as petals, gibbous, 2–3 mm; style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on prostrate to ascending peduncles. |
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. |
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Capsules | ellipsoid, 5–12 mm, glabrous. |
ellipsoid, 6–10 mm, glabrous. |
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Seeds | beige, mottled to bronze, 1.5–2.5 mm. |
beige, mottled to brown, 1.4–3 mm. |
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2n | = 54. |
= 56. |
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Viola sororia |
Viola pedata |
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Phenology | Flowering Mar–Jun. | |||||
Habitat | Dry to mesic habitats in woods, thickets, stream banks, moist prairies, pastures, disturbed ground, not in saturated soil | |||||
Elevation | 0–3000 m (0–9800 ft) | |||||
Distribution |
AL; AR; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WI; WV; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC; SK
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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
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Discussion | Viola sororia is similar to V. palmata in the high degree of phenotypic plasticity. The petal color is usually light to dark blue-violet. In V. sororia forma priceana (the Confederate violet) petals are grayish white with violet veins. Viola septentrionalis was recognized by N. L. Gil-Ad (1997) based on what he considered distinct capsule and seed morphology. His assumptions were based on one to four specimens. A. Haines (2011) alluded to the variability of V. sororia and indicated that a more northern form has often been called V. septentrionalis. He suggested that range-wide patterns of variation make it difficult or impractical to separate. We currently see no valid reason to recognize V. septentrionalis. Viola floridana was recognized by D. B. Ward (2006) as distinct from V. sororia based on being glabrous except for scattered hairs on petioles. Viola sororia reportedly hybridizes with V. cucullata (= V. ×bissellii House), V. hirsutula [= V. ×cordifolia (Nuttall) Schweinitz], V. pedatifida var. brittoniana (= V. ×insolita House), V. pedatifida var. pedatifida (= V. ×bernardii Greene), and V. sagittata var. sagittata (= V. ×conjugens Greene). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 6, p. 158. | FNA vol. 6, p. 143. | ||||
Parent taxa | Violaceae > Viola | Violaceae > Viola | ||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||
Synonyms | V. chalcosperma, V. floridana, V. latiuscula, V. palmata var. sororia, V. papilionaceae, V. priceana, V. rosacea, V. septentrionalis, V. wilmattiae | |||||
Name authority | Willdenow: Hort. Berol. 1: plate 72. (1806) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 933. (1753) | ||||
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