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3-nerve violet, desert pansy, Rainier or sagebrush or three-nerve violet, Rainier violet, sagebrush violet, three-nerve violet

kidney-leaf violet, Leconte violet, northern bog violet, violette néphrophylle

Habit Plants perennial, caulescent, not stoloniferous, 5–15 cm. Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 5–15 cm; rhizome slender, becoming thick and fleshy with age.
Stems

1–4, decumbent, ascending, or erect, ca. 1/2 subterranean, glabrous, from single, vertical, deep-seated caudex.

Leaves

basal and cauline;

basal: 1–7, palmately compound, leaflets 3–5;

stipules adnate to petiole, forming 2 linear-lanceolate wings, unlobed, margins entire, apex of each wing free, acute;

petiole 4.5–15 cm, glabrous;

blade reniform or ovate to ± orbiculate, 2–5 × 2.5–5 cm, coriaceous, base tapered, leaflets cleft or dissected into 2–3 elliptic, lanceolate, or oblanceolate lobes 2–7 mm wide, margins usually entire, eciliate, apex acute, mucronulate, surfaces glabrous (± glaucous), abaxial surface usually with prominent vein parallel to each margin;

cauline similar to basal except: stipules lanceolate;

petiole 1–5.5 cm;

blade 1–3 × 2–4.5 cm.

basal, 4–7, ascending to erect;

stipules lanceolate, margins entire or fimbriate, apex acute;

petiole 2–25 cm, usually glabrous;

blade usually grayish green or purplish green abaxially, unlobed, ovate, reniform, or broadly reniform to orbiculate, 1–7 × 1–7 cm, somewhat fleshy, base broadly cordate or reniform to ± truncate, margins crenate to serrate, ciliate or eciliate, apex acute to obtuse or rounded, surfaces usually glabrous, rarely sparsely pubescent.

Peduncles

1.1–7 cm, glabrous.

3–25 cm, usually glabrous.

Flowers

sepals lanceolate, margins eciliate, auricles 0–1 mm;

petals: upper 2 often overlapping, dark reddish violet on both surfaces, lower 3 lilac, rarely white, lateral 2 bearded, with yellow patch basally and reddish violet patch distal to yellow patch, lowest 9–15 mm with yellow patch, dark reddish violet-veined, spur yellow, gibbous, 0.6–1.5 mm;

style head bearded; cleistogamous flowers absent.

sepals ovate, margins usually eciliate, auricles 1–2 mm;

petals deep bluish violet on both surfaces, lower 3 white basally and darker violet-veined, lateral 2 bearded, upper 2 sometimes sparsely bearded, lowest densely bearded or beardless, 10–28 mm, spur same color as petals, gibbous, 2–3 mm;

style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on erect to ascending peduncles.

Capsules

ovoid, 7–12 mm, glabrous.

ovoid, 5–10 mm, glabrous.

Seeds

tan, 3.2–4.5 mm.

beige to brown or dark brown, 1.5–2.5 mm.

2n

= 54.

Viola trinervata

Viola nephrophylla

Phenology Flowering Mar–May. Flowering Jan–Sep.
Habitat Sagebrush flats, dry, rocky hillsides, usually in gravelly soil Wet habitats in saturated soil in prairies, pastures, bogs, fens, sedge meadows, rocky shores of lakes and streams, limestone outcrops, gravelly calcareous stream beds
Elevation 400–1200 m (1300–3900 ft) 100–3000 m (300–9800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; IA; ID; IL; KS; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; ND; NE; NH; NM; NV; NY; OH; OR; PA; SD; TX; UT; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; NU; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

In some populations of Viola trinervata the lower three petals are white with a yellow area proximally (V. B. Baird 1942).

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

Viola nephrophylla has the widest distribution in North America of any of the acaulescent blue violets.

There is some question whether the species we now know as Viola nephrophylla fits with the protologue and type specimen(s). McKinney examined the type designated by Greene; it appears that what most botanists have called V. nephrophylla may be an undescribed taxon. N. L. Gil-Ad (1997) believed Greene’s type contained plants that were genetically impure based on seed coat micromorphology and suggested the specimens might be a mixture of both orthospecies and introgressants.

Viola mccabeiana was described by M. S. Baker in 1940 from collections made in British Columbia. Later, Baker (1949b) discussed the reasons why the name V. mccabeiana needed to be abandoned. C. L. Hitchcock et al. (1955–1969, vol. 3) treated V. mccabeiana as synonymous with V. nephrophylla var. cognata. While Viola mccabeiana is recognized in Canada (L. Brouillet et al., http://data.canadensys.net/vascan/), we believe it is best included within V. nephrophylla.

Viola nephrophylla reportedly hybridizes with V. cucullata (= V. ×insessa House), V. sororia var. sororia (= V. ×napae House), and V. affinis (= V. ×subaffinis House).

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

Source FNA vol. 6, p. 161. FNA vol. 6, p. 139.
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. rotundifolia, V. sagittata, V. selkirkii, V. sempervirens, V. septemloba, V. sheltonii, V. sororia, V. striata, V. subsinuata, V. tomentosa, V. tricolor, 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. 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
Synonyms V. beckwithii var. trinervata V. arizonica, V. austiniae, V. cognata, V. crassula, V. galacifolia, V. lunellii, V. mccabeiana, V. nephrophylla var. arizonica, V. nephrophylla var. cognata, V. peramoena, V. pratincola, V. prionosepala, V. retusa, V. subjuncta, V. vagula
Name authority (Howell) Howell ex A. Gray: Bot. Gaz. 11: 290. (1886) Greene: Pittonia 3: 144. (1896)
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