Sweet Violet Viola odorata
 
Family – Violaceae, Violet family
Creeping perennial – up to 10 cm tall. 1m spread
Flowering – March to April
Soils -  Neutral to alkaline
Position – Full sun or partial shade, preferably on moist but well-drained banks or slopes.
 
 
Very occasionally flowers are pink or lilac. This species is distributed throughout Britain and Ireland, but is less common in Scotland, Ireland and west Wales1. . It was first recorded botanically in Britain by Thomas Johnson in 16292. . There are about 10 wild species of Viola in Britain and Ireland, and garden pansies are hybrids between some of them.
 
This plant has been grown in gardens for many centuries and was well-known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. To the ancient Greeks the flower had an association with Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and her son Priapus, who represented male sexuality. This symbolism was recognised in the mediaeval period and violets were often depicted in mediaeval art3. .
 
The fragrance has been used for making perfumes since ancient times, and formed the basis of various medicines and sweets4. , surviving until recent times in the form of sweets known as ‘Parma Violets’. The flowers are edible and can be candied.
 
This plant is easy to grow in dappled shade or in open situations, and can be planted (for example) under fruit bushes such as gooseberries and blackcurrants. There are many cultivars available in the nursery trade, some of which have larger flowers than the wild forms and some of which are hybrids with other species. If you grow these, prevent them spreading into the wild. The true species can be obtained from suppliers of native wild flowers.
 
Members of the genus Viola do not attract many pollinating insects. They can produce seeds without fertilisation, in flowers close to the ground which do not open. This phenomenon is called cleistogamy. The seeds bear small nutritious fleshy attachments called elaiosomes which are an attractive food for ants and slugs. The seeds pass unharmed through their digestive systems and the seeds are distributed in this way some distance from the parent plant5. .
 
The caterpillars of several species of fritillary butterflies feed on this species6. , as will some moths such as the buff ermine Spilosoma luteum, aphids and others7. .
 
See also our page on the closely related dog violet.
 
References
 
1.  Stace, C. 2010  New Flora of the British Isles, Third Edition. P. 333.
 
2.  Pearman, D. (2017). The Discovery of the Native Flora of Britain and Ireland, Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland. P423 
 
3. Grigson, G. 1995. An Englishman’s Flora. P. 70.
 
4. Mabey, R. 1996. Flora Britannica. P. 128.
 
5. Article on the website of Science magazine, accessed 5 April 2023. 
 
6.  Crafer, T. 2005. Foodplant list for the Caterpillars of Britain’s Butterflies and Larger Moths.
 
7.  See the Biological Record Centre database  
 
Page written by Marc Carlton.  Compiled by Steve Head
Sweet Violet Viola odorata
 
Family – Violaceae, Violet family
Creeping perennial – up to 10 cm tall. 1m spread
Flowering – March to April
Soils -  Neutral to alkaline
Position – Full sun or partial shade, preferably on moist but well-drained banks or slopes.
 
 
This plant forms low creeping mats, spreading by runners that send down roots as they go along. Old colonies of this plant can be over a metre across. The small evergreen leaves are round or oval and the flowers are always scented. This species typically grows on banks in woodland, or at the base of hedges or the edge of paths. The flowers appear in March and are usually a dark-violet blue colour, but in some districts white-flowered plants predominate. Very occasionally flowers are pink or lilac. This species is distributed throughout Britain and Ireland, but is less common in Scotland, Ireland and west Wales1. . It was first recorded botanically in Britain by Thomas Johnson in 16292. . There are about 10 wild species of Viola in Britain and Ireland, and garden pansies are hybrids between some of them.
 
This plant has been grown in gardens for many centuries and was well-known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. To the ancient Greeks the flower had an association with Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and her son Priapus, who represented male sexuality. This symbolism was recognised in the mediaeval period and violets were often depicted in mediaeval art3. .
 
The fragrance has been used for making perfumes since ancient times, and formed the basis of various medicines and sweets4. , surviving until recent times in the form of sweets known as ‘Parma Violets’. The flowers are edible and can be candied.
 
This plant is easy to grow in dappled shade or in open situations, and can be planted (for example) under fruit bushes such as gooseberries and blackcurrants. There are many cultivars available in the nursery trade, some of which have larger flowers than the wild forms and some of which are hybrids with other species. If you grow these, prevent them spreading into the wild. The true species can be obtained from suppliers of native wild flowers.
 
Members of the genus Viola do not attract many pollinating insects. They can produce seeds without fertilisation, in flowers close to the ground which do not open. This phenomenon is called cleistogamy. The seeds bear small nutritious fleshy attachments called elaiosomes which are an attractive food for ants and slugs. The seeds pass unharmed through their digestive systems and the seeds are distributed in this way some distance from the parent plant5. .
 
The caterpillars of several species of fritillary butterflies feed on this species6. , as will some moths such as the buff ermine Spilosoma luteum, aphids and others7. .
 
See also our page on the closely related dog violet.
 
References
 
1.  Stace, C. 2010  New Flora of the British Isles, Third Edition. P. 333.
 
2.  Pearman, D. (2017). The Discovery of the Native Flora of Britain and Ireland, Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland. P423 
 
3. Grigson, G. 1995. An Englishman’s Flora. P. 70.
 
4. Mabey, R. 1996. Flora Britannica. P. 128.
 
5. Article on the website of Science magazine, accessed 5 April 2023. 
 
6.  Crafer, T. 2005. Foodplant list for the Caterpillars of Britain’s Butterflies and Larger Moths.
 
7.  See the Biological Record Centre database  
 
Page written by Marc Carlton.  Compiled by Steve Head
Sweet Violet Viola odorata
 
Family – Violaceae, Violet family
Creeping perennial – up to 10 cm tall. 1m spread
Flowering – March to April
Soils -  Neutral to alkaline
Position – Full sun or partial shade, preferably on moist but well-drained banks or slopes.
 
 
This plant forms low creeping mats, spreading by runners that send down roots as they go along. Old colonies of this plant can be over a metre across. The small evergreen leaves are round or oval and the flowers are always scented. This species typically grows on banks in woodland, or at the base of hedges or the edge of paths. The flowers appear in March and are usually a dark-violet blue colour, but in some districts white-flowered plants predominate. Very occasionally flowers are pink or lilac. This species is distributed throughout Britain and Ireland, but is less common in Scotland, Ireland and west Wales1. . It was first recorded botanically in Britain by Thomas Johnson in 16292. . There are about 10 wild species of Viola in Britain and Ireland, and garden pansies are hybrids between some of them.
 
This plant has been grown in gardens for many centuries and was well-known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. To the ancient Greeks the flower had an association with Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and her son Priapus, who represented male sexuality. This symbolism was recognised in the mediaeval period and violets were often depicted in mediaeval art3. .
 
The fragrance has been used for making perfumes since ancient times, and formed the basis of various medicines and sweets4. , surviving until recent times in the form of sweets known as ‘Parma Violets’. The flowers are edible and can be candied.
 
This plant is easy to grow in dappled shade or in open situations, and can be planted (for example) under fruit bushes such as gooseberries and blackcurrants. There are many cultivars available in the nursery trade, some of which have larger flowers than the wild forms and some of which are hybrids with other species. If you grow these, prevent them spreading into the wild. The true species can be obtained from suppliers of native wild flowers.
 
Members of the genus Viola do not attract many pollinating insects. They can produce seeds without fertilisation, in flowers close to the ground which do not open. This phenomenon is called cleistogamy. The seeds bear small nutritious fleshy attachments called elaiosomes which are an attractive food for ants and slugs. The seeds pass unharmed through their digestive systems and the seeds are distributed in this way some distance from the parent plant5. .
 
The caterpillars of several species of fritillary butterflies feed on this species6. , as will some moths such as the buff ermine Spilosoma luteum, aphids and others7. .
 
See also our page on the closely related dog violet.
 
References
 
1.  Stace, C. 2010  New Flora of the British Isles, Third Edition. P. 333.
 
2.  Pearman, D. (2017). The Discovery of the Native Flora of Britain and Ireland, Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland. P423 
 
3. Grigson, G. 1995. An Englishman’s Flora. P. 70.
 
4. Mabey, R. 1996. Flora Britannica. P. 128.
 
5. Article on the website of Science magazine, accessed 5 April 2023. 
 
6.  Crafer, T. 2005. Foodplant list for the Caterpillars of Britain’s Butterflies and Larger Moths.
 
7.  See the Biological Record Centre database  
 
Page written by Marc Carlton.  Compiled by Steve Head
Very occasionally flowers are pink or lilac. This species is distributed throughout Britain and Ireland, but is less common in Scotland, Ireland and west Wales1. . It was first recorded botanically in Britain by Thomas Johnson in 16292. . There are about 10 wild species of Viola in Britain and Ireland, and garden pansies are hybrids between some of them.
 
This plant has been grown in gardens for many centuries and was well-known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. To the ancient Greeks the flower had an association with Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and her son Priapus, who represented male sexuality. This symbolism was recognised in the mediaeval period and violets were often depicted in mediaeval art3. .
 
The fragrance has been used for making perfumes since ancient times, and formed the basis of various medicines and sweets4. , surviving until recent times in the form of sweets known as ‘Parma Violets’. The flowers are edible and can be candied.
 
This plant is easy to grow in dappled shade or in open situations, and can be planted (for example) under fruit bushes such as gooseberries and blackcurrants. There are many cultivars available in the nursery trade, some of which have larger flowers than the wild forms and some of which are hybrids with other species. If you grow these, prevent them spreading into the wild. The true species can be obtained from suppliers of native wild flowers.
 
Members of the genus Viola do not attract many pollinating insects. They can produce seeds without fertilisation, in flowers close to the ground which do not open. This phenomenon is called cleistogamy. The seeds bear small nutritious fleshy attachments called elaiosomes which are an attractive food for ants and slugs. The seeds pass unharmed through their digestive systems and the seeds are distributed in this way some distance from the parent plant5. .
 
The caterpillars of several species of fritillary butterflies feed on this species6. , as will some moths such as the buff ermine Spilosoma luteum, aphids and others7. .
 
See also our page on the closely related dog violet.
 
References
 
1.  Stace, C. 2010  New Flora of the British Isles, Third Edition. P. 333.
 
2.  Pearman, D. (2017). The Discovery of the Native Flora of Britain and Ireland, Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland. P423 
 
3. Grigson, G. 1995. An Englishman’s Flora. P. 70.
 
4. Mabey, R. 1996. Flora Britannica. P. 128.
 
5. Article on the website of Science magazine, accessed 5 April 2023. 
 
6.  Crafer, T. 2005. Foodplant list for the Caterpillars of Britain’s Butterflies and Larger Moths.
 
7.  See the Biological Record Centre database  
 
Page written by Marc Carlton.  Compiled by Steve Head
This plant forms low creeping mats, spreading by runners that send down roots as they go along. Old colonies of this plant can be over a metre across. The small evergreen leaves are round or oval and the flowers are always scented. This species typically grows on banks in woodland, or at the base of hedges or the edge of paths. The flowers appear in March and are usually a dark-violet blue colour, but in some districts white-flowered plants predominate.
White variety of sweet violet
White variety of sweet violet
White variety of sweet violet
This plant forms low creeping mats, spreading by runners that send down roots as they go along. Old colonies of this plant can be over a metre across. The small evergreen leaves are round or oval and the flowers are always scented. This species typically grows on banks in woodland, or at the base of hedges or the edge of paths. The flowers appear in March and are usually a dark-violet blue colour, but in some districts white-flowered plants predominate.
           Garden Wildplants
        Garden Wildplants