The Heartsease is not quite so common as the Dog Violet, though in some
parts of Britain it grows abundantly. It is in flower all summer.
The flowers have five petals, but these are not all the same colour.
There are two deep purple petals and three which are bright
orange-yellow. In the Heartsease the broadest petal has a very small
tube at the narrow end, the same as in the Dog Violet. There are five
pointed green sepals, which do not fall off after the flower is
withered. You will often see the seed-vessel sitting among these sepals,
and when this seed-vessel is ripe it splits open into three small
boat-shaped cases, each with a row of seeds inside.
The stem of the Heartsease is round, with distinct lines running up the
sides.
The leaves are oval, on short stalks, and they have wavy edges. Where
they and the flower-stalk join the main stem you find a fringe of other
green leaves, quite differently shaped. These leaves have a long name
which you will learn later, but meantime you should notice how they are
cut up into little green straps which stand out all round the stem.