Striped Violet

Scientific Name: Viola striata. The genus name, Viola means “violet”, and the epithet striata, from the Latin stria, means furrow, referring to the thin stripes inside the flower.

Common Name: Striped Violet. Another common name for this species is cream violet, referring to the creamy white color of the flowers.

Family: Violaceae (Violet family). This is a large family of plants which is distributed worldwide. All species in Virginia are herbaceous annuals or perennials. They have leaves which are usually alternate on the stem, and bilaterally symmetrical flowers with 5 petals. The seeds are borne in capsules which split open to throw the seeds when ripe.¹

Average Height: 6-12 inches

Description: A perennial plant with leaning or upright stems bearing many heart-shaped, alternate leaves with finely toothed margins. The flowers are 5-petaled and have the familiar violet structure, with two petals on either side and one at the bottom. The petals are a creamy white color with fine, dark purplish stripes in the lower portion of the three bottom petals.

Bloom time: Mar – May

Notes: This is our only violet species which has aboveground leafy stems and white flowers without any yellow or violet coloration. The white-flowered form of the common blue violet (Viola communis) is similar, but only bears leaves at the base of the plant and has much more purple streaking on the petals.

Range: Widespread and fairly common in the Piedmont and mountains of Virginia, especially along larger streams and rivers. Rare in the Coastal Plain, where it is restricted to calcium-rich soils. Widespread in the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Upper South.^4,8

Geology/Soil: Typically found in sandy or loamy soils composed of weathered mafic and calcareous rocks and nutrient-rich alluvium.

Habitat: Most strongly associated with rich moist forests and well-drained floodplain forests, but can be found occasionally in drier upland forests.

Flora associations: Often found with a wide array of other spring-blooming wildflowers such as mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum), Dutchman’s breeches (Dicentra cucullaria), Virginia bluebell (Mertensia virginica), spring beauty (Claytonia virginica var. virginica), and cut-leaf toothwort (Cardamine concatenata).

Fauna associations: Violets are larval host plants for fritillary butterflies, including the great spangled fritillary (Speyeria cybele) and variegated fritillary (Euptoieta claudia), as well as the beggar moth (Eudaphe mendica), Nais tiger moth (Apantesis nais), and giant leopard moth (Hypercompe scribonia). Many species of pollinators visit the flowers, including the violet andrenid bee (Andrena violae) and giant bee fly (Bombylius major).^6,7

Viola striata seeds have an attached nutrient-packed ‘elaiosome’–a tasty snack pack evolved to attract ants. While ants collect Viola seeds in order to eat the elaiosomes, the ants generally don’t remove them from the seeds until they reach their nest. Once there they commonly discard the elaiosome-stripped seeds in a ‘midden’, the ant colony’s nutrient-rich waste pile, and a perfect place for seed germination.^2,3 This strategy of using ants for seed dispersal (formally known as myrmecochory) is common among many other spring ephemerals in our area, including spring beauty (Claytonia virginica), bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), perfoliate bellwort (Uvularia perfoliata), and trilliums (Trillium spp.).

Human associations: Other members of the genus Viola have edible young greens and flowers, but it is uncertain if this species does as well. There is an ethnobotanical reference to this species being used in Haudenosaunee medicine to “make a girl sick and crazy after being refused by her parents!”⁵

We want these plants to thrive and for everyone who gets to visit the park to enjoy them, so remember – don’t pick flowers or other parts of the plant!!

1 Weakley, A.S., J.C. Ludwig, and J.F. Townsend. 2012. Flora of Virginia. Bland Crowder, ed. Foundation of the Flora of Virginia Project, Inc., Richmond. Fort Worth: Botanical Research Institute of Texas Press, , pp. 1155-1157.

2 Clark, R. 2022. Are seed-dispersing ants elaiosome-limited? An experimental test in a Connecticut forest dominated by myrmecochorous plants. Food Webs 32 (2022)

3 In Defense of Plants. Episode 166 – Ants as Seed Dispersers a.k.a. The Myrmecochory Episode! June 24, 2018.

4 “2013 BONAP North American Plant Atlas. TaxonMaps.” Bonap.net, bonap.net/Napa/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Viola. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.

5 “BRIT – Native American Ethnobotany Database.” Naeb.brit.org, naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=viola+striata. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.

6 Hilty, John. “Insect Table (Viola Spp.).” Www.illinoiswildflowers.info, www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/tables/table33.html. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.

7—. “Striped White Violet (Viola Striata).” Www.illinoiswildflowers.info, www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/wh_violet.htm. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.

8 Virginia Botanical Associates. “Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora | Viola Striata Ait.” Www.vaplantatlas.org, www.vaplantatlas.org/index.php?do=plant&plant=3720&search=Search. Accessed 4 Mar. 2024.

Definitions:

Spring ephemeral: A perennial plant which grows early in the spring – before the trees grow leaves – to take advantage of the sunlight reaching the forest floor. In less than 2 months, the plant grows, blooms, and produces seed and then disappears from view as the leaves die back.

Myrmecochory: The formal term used for the dispersal of seeds by ants.

Host plant: A plant which serves as the food source for a particular species, typically used in reference to butterflies and moths.