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prostrate blue violet

cedar glade or glade violet, glade violet

Habit Plants perennial, caulescent, stoloniferous, 5–19 cm; stolons green or reddish, leafy, sometimes rooting at nodes, becoming lignified in age. Plants perennial, acaulescent, not stoloniferous, 5–20 cm; rhizome thick, fleshy.
Stems

1–5, prostrate, spreading, finely puberulent, from current and/or previous year’s growth, on usually vertical, fleshy rhizome, rooting and forming rosettes at or near tip; rooted rosettes often develop into an erect, fleshy caudex from which new stems are produced.

Leaves

basal and cauline;

basal: 3–6;

stipules lanceolate, margins laciniate, projections often long-filamentous, apex long-acuminate;

petiole 2.3–7.3 cm, glabrous or pubescent;

blade often purple-spotted abaxially and/or adaxially, ovate to reniform, 1.2–5 × 1.6–3.6 cm, base deeply to broadly cordate, margins crenulate to serrate, ciliate or eciliate, apex rounded to obtuse, surfaces glabrous or pubescent;

cauline similar to basal except: stipules ovate to lanceolate, margins laciniate;

petiole 1–3.5 cm;

blade 1.3–2.9 × 1.4–3.2 cm.

basal, 3, prostrate to ascending;

stipules linear-lanceolate, margins entire, apex acute;

petiole 1.5–7 cm, usually glabrous;

earliest leaf blades ± deltate or 3-lobed, mid-season blades 5–9-lobed, 1–9 × 1–10 cm, base truncate to cuneate, middle lobe lanceolate or spatulate to narrowly ovate, lateral lobes lanceolate or spatulate to falcate, margins serrate, sometimes with deltate or falcate appendages or teeth, ciliate, apex acute, surfaces usually glabrous, rarely pubescent.

Peduncles

5–9.6 cm, glabrous or pubescent.

2–15 cm, usually glabrous, rarely pubescent.

Flowers

sepals lanceolate to ovate, margins mostly eciliate, auricles 0.5–1 mm;

petals pale to bluish violet on both surfaces, lower 3 white basally and darker violet-veined, lateral 2 and often upper 2 and lowest bearded, lowest 15–18 mm, spur white, gibbous to usually elongated, 3–5 mm;

style head bearded; cleistogamous flowers axillary.

sepals lanceolate to ovate, margins ciliate or eciliate, auricles 0.5–1 mm;

petals light to dark blue-violet on both surfaces, lower 3 and sometimes upper 2 white basally, lower 3 darker violet-veined, lateral 2 densely bearded, lowest 10–15 mm, spur usually lilac, gibbous, 2–3 mm;

style head beardless; cleistogamous flowers on prostrate peduncles.

Capsules

ovoid to ellipsoid, 5–7 mm, glabrous.

ellipsoid, 11–14 mm, glabrous.

Seeds

brown, 1–1.5 mm.

beige, mottled to bronze, 2–3 mm.

2n

= 20.

= 54.

Viola walteri

Viola egglestonii

Phenology Flowering Mar–May.
Habitat Limestone glades and barrens
Elevation 100–200 m (300–700 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; GA; KY; LA; MD; MS; NC; OH; PA; SC; TN; TX; VA; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; GA; IN; KY; TN
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

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

N. H. Russell (1965) was the first to consider Viola egglestonii similar to V. septemloba. After analyzing leaf-blade lobing patterns, L. E. McKinney considered it a subspecies of V. septemloba. Although similarities exist between these taxa, we maintain them as distinct species.

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

Key
1. Leaf blades pubescent, hairs scattered throughout or concentrated along veins, adaxial surfaces, or toward margins; stipule margin processes 1/2+ stipule length.
var. walteri
1. Leaf blades glabrous or pubescent, hairs usually confined to adaxial surfaces; stipule margin processes to 1/2 stipule length.
var. appalachiensis
Source FNA vol. 6, p. 163. FNA vol. 6, p. 129.
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. trinervata, V. tripartita, V. umbraticola, V. utahensis, V. vallicola, V. villosa
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. 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. walteri var. appalachiensis, V. walteri var. walteri
Synonyms V. septemloba subsp. egglestonii
Name authority House: Torreya 6: 172. (1906) Brainerd: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 37: 526, plates 34, 35. (1910)
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