Viola odorata (mauve)
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Viola odorata (mauve)• Click here to visit our Main Plant List page for current availability of this plant
• common name: viola
• flowering season: early spring, fall
• height: 4 inches
• Light requirements: partial shade
• Soil requirements: average soil that is well drained
• Water requirments: more moisture in spring, less moisture during summer
• Growth habit: low and creeping
• How to propagate: from seeds or by separating a side-shoot
• Leaf type: green and heart shaped
• Ways to use it: in a woodland garden, on the shady side of a house, or potted
• Special characteristics: it blooms for a very long time in the garden
• Other points of interests: sweetly scented flowers
This flower is a grayish violet, very fragrant and low growing. It blooms early in the year, and often will rebloom as the days become cooler at the end of summer. Light shade is recommended. Adding some well rotted compost when planting is helpful. Young plants should be watered regularly to get them off to a good start. Once established, plants do not need more than average moisture. USDA Zones 3 - 9. Sweet violets have been cultivated in gardens for a long time, not only for their beauty and fragrance, but also for their medicinal properties. They contain the glycoside of salicylic acid, which has been used for the synthesis of aspirin. It is no wonder herbalists have prescribed an infusion of this plant for treating headaches, migraines and insomnia.