Flora of the Southeastern United States

Viola sororia Willdenow var. sororia. Common name: Common Blue Violet. Phenology: Feb-May. Habitat: Loam or clay soils in dry-mesic to wet-mesic forests, higher ground and terraces or borders of bottomlands, and lawns and other anthropogenically modified sites formerly with native vegetation. Distribution: Newfoundland and Labrador (Newfoundland) west to Manitoba, south to s. Florida and Texas.

Origin/Endemic status: Native

Taxonomy Comments: A heterogeneous complex of morphologically divergent but inadequately understood essentially glabrous taxa (“glabrous”, “hirsutula-like”) plus densely hirsute V. sororia sensu stricto; and two other uncertain taxa (Viola domestica E. P. Bicknell and V. pratincola Greene). The taxa share broad obtuse to rounded sepals and generally broad leaf blades, as well as a glabrous spurred petal, but they typically grow separately over the extensive zone of sympatry, occupy distinctly different microsites and maintain their distinctions when growing in the local area. Distinctions and geographic distributions are presently being interpreted.

Synonymy ⓘ: = Ar, Ballard, Kartesz, & Nishino (2023), McKinney & Russell (2002); = Viola sororia Willdenow — GrPl, NcTx, NE, Va, W, Ballard () (in prep), Gil-ad (1998); > Viola palmata L. var. sororia (Willd.) Pollard — RAB; > Viola papilionacea Pursh — F, RAB, S, S13, Tat, WV, misapplied; > Viola papilionacea Pursh var. papilionacea — G, misapplied; > Viola papilionacea Pursh var. priceana (Pollard) Alexander — G, misapplied; > Viola priceana Pollard — S; < Viola sororia Willdenow — C, Can, Fl2, FNA6, K4, Mo3, NS, POWO, S13, Tn, Tx, WH3, Haines (2001); > Viola sororia Willdenow — F, G, Il, K1, Pa, S, Tat. Basionym: Viola sororia Willdenow 1806

Links to other floras: < Viola sororia - FNA6

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Wetland Indicator Status:

• Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain: FAC (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Eastern Mountains and Piedmont: FAC (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Great Plains: FAC (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Midwest: FAC (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Northcentral & Northeast: FAC (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)

Heliophily ⓘ: 5