🌿 ISLAND PEARLS: VIOLA ADUNCA 🌿

Tiny pearl-like seeds of
VIOLA ADUNCA

"Western Long-spurred Violet"
Native to 
of the San Juan Archipelago.
Clay art by Jodie & Terri Cable©
Photographed this day of
Nineteen July 2020.

"Western Longspurred Violets"
VIOLA ADUNCA

A native perennial herb
nurtured in a private garden
at Olga, Orcas Island,
San Juan Archipelago.
The gem in the pot was the bearer of the
seeds in top photo.

Botanical name: Viola adunca

Common name: Western Longspurred violet, western dog violet.

Habitat:  dry to moist meadows and open forests of North America. 

Conservation status: not of concern.

USDA Hardiness Zone: 04-8

Height: 3-8 inches.

Bloom time: Spring, early summer.

Flowers: lavender-blue to violet nodding flowers with 5 purple petals.

Ease of care: moderately easy.

Sun: full sun, part shade.

Culture: fertile, moist but well-drained soil.

Notes: Self-seeds freely. Suits a rock garden. Edible leaves and flowers. Grows from a small rhizome system.

" At the Cattle Point meadows, this violet is almost abundant for which we should be amazed, considering its competitors –– the Thistle and a horde of aggressive grasses. In fact, this species is the most common of the San Juan violets, occurring on many meadows.
Scott Atkinson and Fred Sharpe. Wild Plants of the San Juan Islands. Seattle, The Mountaineers. 1985.

"The leaves and flowers of all violet species can be eaten raw in salads, used as potherbs, or made into tea. Candied violet flowers are used for cake decorations. Flowers and leaves have long been used in various herbal remedies as poultices and a laxative for children and to relieve coughs and lung congestion."
Pojar and Mackinnon. Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Redmond, WA. 1994.  

Native western violet seed packet,
 available at 
Gatehouse Seeds on Reefnet Bay Road,
Shaw Island, San Juan Archipelago, WA.