A rather large family, widely distributed, but we have only three
genera, the principal one being Viola, which is the ancient Latin name,
used by Virgil.
There are many kinds of Viola, widely distributed, blooming in spring,
but often flowering again in the autumn; low, perennial herbs, with
stipules; leaves alternate, or from the root; flowers complete,
irregular, nodding, nectar-yielding, usually single; sepals five,
with small ear-shaped projections at the base; petals five, slightly
bearded within, so as to afford a foothold for bees, the lowest petal
larger and with a spur at the back; stamens five, short, with broadened
filaments and anthers opening inward, so as to cover the pistil all
but the end of the style, the two lower anthers with spurs at the
base, which project into the spur of the petal; ovary superior and
one-celled; style club-shaped, with a one-sided stigma. The flowers
are often of two kinds, the earlier ones with long flower-stalks, with
petals and showy, but not producing seed; the later ones with short
stalks, with small or no petals, but fertile, often cleistogamous, that
is, fertilized in the bud. The capsule splits open and as the three
valves dry they fold firmly together lengthwise and force out the seeds.
[Sidenote: =Pine Violet=
_Vìola lobàta_
=Yellow
Spring, summer
Cal., Oreg.=]
A pretty plant, growing in the woods, with leafy stems, from four to
fourteen inches high, with leafy stipules and smooth, rather light
green leaves, deeply lobed, so that they look unlike most Violet
leaves. The flowers are more or less clustered, an inch or more across,
with bright yellow petals, veined with purple inside, tinged with
purplish-brown outside, the two side petals with a little hairy patch
at the base inside.
[Sidenote: =Western Heartsease=
_Vìola ocellàta_
=White and yellow
Spring, summer
Cal., Oreg.=]
A shy little woodland plant, from five to twelve inches tall, with
creeping rootstocks and small, dry stipules. The flowers are an inch
or less across, the two upper petals white, tinged with reddish-purple
on the outside, and the other petals white or yellow, with a splash of
purple on each of the two side petals and the lower one veined with
purple. This grows in shady woods.
[Illustration: Western Heartsease--Viola ocellata.