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BOTANY AND CULTURE

• BOTANY
• CULTURE

BOTANY

The Violet Family, Family Violaceae.Widely scattered throughout most of the world, wild violets are found in Europe ,Asia and in every state in the USA The Genus Viola is divided into sections based on the form of part of the flower and include;Nomimium (which covers true violets ), Melanium (wild pansies) and Chamaemelanium.Confusion exists because plants freely hybridise ( Ref 9)

Violaceae ( Ref Prof Gerald Carr)
Dilleniidae: Violales. The Violaceae are shrubs or herbs comprising about 16 genera and 800 species. The leaves are alternate or rarely opposite, and are simple; the stipules are minute or leafy. The flowers are bisexual, zygomorphic or sometimes actinomorphic, and sometimes cleistogamous. The perianth is differentiated into 5 distinct or nearly distinct imbricate sepals and 5 imbricate petals, the lowermost of which is commonly spurred. The androecium consists of 5, nearly sessile, distinct or connate stamens with anthers that are weakly coherent around the gynoecium. The two lowermost anthers commonly have nectariferous appendages that project backward into the spur of the lowermost petal. The gynoecium consists of a single compound pistil of 3-5 carpels, a single style, and a superior ovary with one locule containing 1-numerous ovules on each of 3-5 parietal placentae. The fruit is a capsule or berry.

Of the more widely cultivated types including the species below, two types of violet are of particular note Sweet Violets and Parma Violets

Viola odorata  ( Sweet Violet)

Many different hybrid cultivars exist as well as several distinctive forms amongst others are,( Ref 12)

Hardy  to zone 4

• var. praecox var.nov is known as the Early Violet

• var.dumetorum

• var.subcarnea

• var.floribunda

• var.sulfurea

• var.alba

Early references are  from Plantarium (1753)and Reichenbach (1832), but there is a long history from 400 BC ( Ref 11)

HABIT

Thick underground stems emitting rooting stolons

LEAVES

Vary in form depending on season. Early spring leaves are often shining, reniform-cordate and are about as broad as they are long. Summer leaves are longer and  often slightly hairy .The leaf shape varies with varieties of v odorata,as well as with season

FLOWERS

Variable often dark blue to purple and violet, but also pale apricot to white. There are two types of flowers, open spring flowers, with five petals, and closed cleistogamous  summer flowers, which  have no petals and are self pollinated.Both types of flowers set seed. Flowers are usually fragrant to very fragrant but this is not the case with all varieties. Collectors should select their plants carefully.

Parma Violet

Hardy to Zone 6

Less Hardy than Sweet Violets and with rather obscure origins this group is widely sought after for the magnificent fragrance of its cultivars.Originating it is thought from Asia Minor and once grown extensively in Italy and France, they used to be called the Naples Violet or Neopolitan, and it is said that they descend from one cultivar of that name.( sometimes called V.odorata pallida plena or V. suavis pallida plena italica) Generally regarded as sterile they are mainly thought to be mutations ( sports) from the original type. From the middle of the 19th century a var named 'de Parme' was listed in nurseries and many other colour variants became collected. The delightful fragrance of the blooms soon led to widespread cultivation as a cut-flower.

There are many  viola species, some of the more widely known and available are shown below, and a fuller list is given in the SPECIES Section, for further information  and research see the references in the  Literature Section.

Violets with Pictures are shown marked  

V. adunca

V. affinis ( LeConte Violet)

V. altaica

V. arborescens ( Shrubby Violet)

V. arenaria

V. arvensis

V. beckwithii ( Great Basin Violet)

V. bicolor ( V. rafinesquei)

V. biflora  (Twin -flowered Violet)

V. blanda

V. brittoniana

V. calcarata

V. canadensis (Canada Violet)

V. canina  ( Dog Violet)

V. chamissoniana cf. var.tracheliifolia ( pamakani) Ref Dr G Carr

V. chamissoniana cf. var.robusta ( pamakani) Ref Dr G Carr

V. conspersa  ( American Dog Violet)

V. cornuta  (Tufted Violet)

V. cucullata

V. elatior

V. elegantula

V. eriocarpa

V. fimbriatula

V. flettii ( Olympic Violet)

V. glabella  (Stream Violet)

V. gracilis

V. hastata

V. hederacea  

V. hirsutula

V. hirta  (Hairy Violet)

V. incognita

V. koreana

V. jooi

V. labrodorica

V. lanaiensis    Ref G Carr

V. lanceolata

V. lutea   ( Mountain Violet)

V. maviensis Ref Dr G Carr

V. missouriensis

V. munbyana

V. nephrophylla

V. nuttallii

V. odorata   (Sweet Violet)

V. pallens

V. palmata

V. palustris  (Marsh Violet)

V. papilionacea

V. pedata  ( Bird's Foot Violet)

V. pedatifida

V. pedunculata  Ref G Carr

V. priceana   (Confederate Violet)

V. primulifolia

V. pubescens

V. rafinesquii  ( Field Pansy)

V. reichenbachiana

V. riviniana

V. rostrata

V. rotundifolia

V. rugulosa

V. rupestris

V. sagittata  ( Arrow-leafed Violet)

V. saxatilis

V. selkirkii ( and var s.variegata)

V. septemloba

V. septemtrionalis

V. sororia

V. striata

V. suavis

V. triloba

V. tricolor     Ref Dr G Carr 

V. vilmorini

OTHER VIOLACEAE

Isodendrion longifolium Ref Dr G Carr