Botany Blog Plants of the Northeastern U.S.

April 29, 2017

Violets

Filed under: North American Native Plants — admin @ 19:04

Violets are blooming and with the sudden surge of warm weather in the northeast there is considerable overlap in bloom time for many species. In the last two days I’ve observed flowering of V. blanda, V. pubescens, V. rotundifolia, V. rostrata, V. sororia, V. striata, V. sagittata, and V. selkirkii. I photographed the latter species for the first time this year.

Flowers of Selkirk’s Violet (Viola selkirkii) have beardless petals.

Leaves and flowers of Selkirk’s Violet all arise from the rhizome, i.e. there are no leafy stems. Leaves are ovate and sparsely hairy above.

The spur of the lower petal is elongate and somewhat expanded, giving this species the alternate common name of Great-spurred Violet.

Arrow-leaved Violet (Viola sagittata var. sagittata) in my garden. It usually does not have so many flowers and notice the leaves are slightly chlorotic. I suspect this might have something to do with the gravel substrate it is in, which is slightly alkaline.

The Common Blue Violet (Viola sororia) can also be quite floriferous, especially when grown in full sun without competition.

Not a violet but Celandine Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum) is blooming now as well. It naturally occurs in a rather restricted region from Ohio and West Virginia west to Missouri and Arkansas.

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