AN ILLUSTRATED KEY TO THE OF ALBERTA

Compiled and writen by Lorna Allen & Linda Kershaw

April 2019

© Linda J. Kershaw & Lorna Allen This key was compiled using informaton primarily from Moss (1983), Douglas et. al. (2000) and the Flora North America (2015). follows VASCAN (Brouillet, 2015). The main references are listed at the end of the key. A special thanks to the Central Alberta Study Group, and to Dorothy Fabijan and Varina Crisfeld in partcular, for their help in reviewng and improving this key The 2015 S-ranks of rare (S1; S1S2; S2; S2S3; SU, according to ACIMS, 2015) are noted in superscript (S1;S2;SU) afer the species names. For more details go to the ACIMS web site. Similarly, exotc species are followed by a superscript X, (X). No species in this are noxious or prohibited noxious according to the Alberta Weed Control Act (2016). VIOLACEAE Violet Family Violet 01a without leafy stems, and fower stalks directly from rootstocks or stolons . .02 2a 01b Plants with well-developed, leafy stems (compact at frst, elongating with age) ....09 02a Flowers yellow; not divided, broadly rounded at the tip, dark green and often lying fat on the ground . Viola orbiculata (in part) 02b Flowers not yellow; leaves divided or not, pointed (except V. palustris) at the tip, variously colored and oriented, but not as above ...03 3a 03a Leaf blades deeply cut into linear or lance- shaped lobes ...... Viola pedatifda 03b Leaves not deeply divided ...... 04 04a Flower spur 3-10 mm long; fowers non- 4a opening (cleistogamous) on sprawling to ascending stalks; upper leaf surface with stiff, erect hairs (rarely hairless) ... 6a 04b Flower spur 1-3 mm long; non-opening fowers on ascending stalks; leaves not as above .05 05a Plants with stolons ...... 06 05b Plants without stolons ...... 08

7a 06a white, the lower 3 petals purple-veined; spur white; leaf stalks with stiff, fat-lying hairs ...... 06b Petals lilac, pale blue, violet, or purple (sometimes nearly white); spur same color as petals; leaf stalks with or without hairs but not as above ...... 07 07a Flower stalks 2-7 cm long, with or without hairs, usually with bracts above the middle; 7b leaves hairless or hairy, with distinctly sharp- pointed tips and smooth, scalloped, or fne- toothed edges, sometimes edged with hairs, usually longer than wide ... S2 07b Flower stalks 2-20 cm long, without hairs, usually with bracts below the middle; leaves hairless with rounded to slightly pointed tips and fnely scalloped edges, ± as long as wide ...... 08a Petals white, the lower 3 petals purple-veined 8a and 8-10 mm long, all petals beardless, or lower 3 sparsely hairy; leaves not feshy, hairy throughout or along the veins (rarely hairless), green beneath...... 08b Petals deep bluish violet, lower 3 white at the base, purple veined, 10-28 mm long, the lower 3 petals densely hairy to beardless, upper 2 sometimes sparsely hairy; leaves ± feshy, 8b hairless (rarely sparse hairs), gray- or purple- tinged beneath ......

3 09a Stipules of stem leaves large (≈ the blades) 10a and lobed; plants annual, introduced .....10 09b Stipules of stem leaves small (much smaller than the blades), rarely lobed; plants perennial, native ...... 11 10a Side petals ≤ sepals in length; styles hairy at the tip ...... X 10b Side petals longer than the sepals; styles hairless at the tip...... X 11a Petals white, often pink- or violet- tinged, 10b yellow at the base; leaves narrowly to broadly heart-shaped, 1-12 x 1-12 cm, often >5 cm wide ...... 11b Petals blue, violet or yellow, rarely white; leaves various, rarely >5 cm wide ...... 12 12a Petals light- to deep- blue or violet (rarely 12a 11a white), lower 3 usually white at the base and purple-veined; stipules slender toothed (→) (rarely smooth-edged) ...... 12b Petals yellow, the lower 3 usually brown- or purple-veined; stipules smooth-edged (rarely toothed)...... 13 13a Flowering stems leafy on the upper part only, → naked below ...... S2 13b Flowering stems leafy throughout ...... 14 14a Leaves heart- to kidney-shaped, 1.4-5.3 cm wide and ≈ in length, blunt tipped (rarely sharp-pointed), notched at the base; stipules triangular to lance-shaped, free from the leaf stalk for much of their length; fower stalks (2.7)3-5(5.6) cm long; lower/outer side of the 13a upper petals lemon yellow ...... Viola orbiculata (in part) 14b Leaves egg-shaped to elliptic or lance-shaped, ≥1.5 times longer than wide, sharply pointed or blunt at the tip, wedge-shaped or squared (rarely slightly notched) at the base; stipules fused to the leaf stalk, forming 2 linear-lance- shaped wings; fower stalks 3-15 cm long; lower/outer side of upper petals lemon yellow or brownish purple ...... 15 15a Leaves elliptic, lance- or egg-shaped, usually 14a at least 3 times as long as wide (1-9 x 0.6-2.5 cm), gradually tapered to the stalk; capsules 4-10 mm long; seeds medium brown ...... 15b Leaves various, usually <3 times as long as wide, (1.5-4.3 x 0.9-3.7 cm), wedge-shaped or squared (rarely slightly notched or gradually tapered) at the base; capsules ≤5 mm long; seeds, tan or brown to red-brown ...... 16 15a

4 16a Leaves strongly hairy (rarely hairless), usually >5 cm long and ≈2-3 times as long as wide (2.7-8.5 × 1.6-3.7 cm), wedge-shaped or squared (rarely slightly notched) at the base; capsules ellipsoid to oblong, 6-12 mm long, usually hairy; seeds brown to red-brown, 2-3 mm long ...... S2 16a 16b Leaves hairless to sparsely hairy, usually <5 cm long, < 2-3 times as long as wide (1.5-4.3 × 0.9-1.1 cm), squared or shallowly notched (rarely wedge-shaped) at the base; capsules spherical, ≈5 mm long, usually hairless; seeds tan, 2.1-2.2 mm long ......

16b

5 References Alberta Conservaton Informaton Management System (ACIMS). 2015. List of all Taxa Confrmed for Alberta as recorded in the ACIMS database - October 15 2015. ACIMS, Government of Albert, Edmonton, Alberta. Briton, N. L. and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated fora of the northern and Canada. reprinted by Dover Publicatons in 1970 editon. Dover Publicatons, Inc., , New York. Brouillet, L., F. Coursol, S.J. Meades, M. Favreau, M. Anions, P. Bélisle & P. Desmet. 2015. VASCAN, the Database of Vascular Plants of Cana- da. htp://data.canadensys.net/vascan/ Budd, A. C., J. Looman, and K. F. Best. 2016. Budd’s fora of the Canadian prairie provinces. 2. Dicots. Reprint editon. CreateSpace Indepen- dent Publishing Platorm. Douglas, G. W., D. Meidinger, and J. Pojar. 2000. Illustrated fora of Britsh Columbia. Volume 5. ( through Zygophyl- laceae) and Pteridophytes. Britsh Columbia Ministry of Forests, Victoria, Britsh Columbia. Fabijan, D. M., J. G. Packer, and K. E. Denford. 1987. The taxonomy of the Viola nutallii complex. Canadian Journal of Botany 65:2562–2580. Flora of North America Editorial Commitee. 2015. Flora of North America North of Mexico. Volume 6. Magnoliophyta: Cucurbitaceae to Dro- seraceae. Oxford University Press, New York. Hitchcock, C.L. and A. Cronquist. 1987. Flora of the Pacifc Northwest, an Illustrated Manual. University of Press, Seatle and London. Hitchcock, C. L., A. Cronquist, M. Ownbey, and J. W. Thompson. 1955-69. Vascular plants of the Pacifc Northwest. Volume 5. University of Washington Press, Seatle, Washington. Moss, E.H. 1983. The Flora of Alberta. Second Editon, Revised by John G. Packer. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Ontario. Province of Alberta. 2016. Weed Control Act, Ofce Consolidaton. Alberta Regulaton 19/2010 with amendments up to and including Alberta Regulaton 125/2016. Alberta Queen’s Printer, Edmonton, AB.

6 List of Species and Illustration Sources Scientfc Name Illus. Source Viola adunca H&C Key to Illustration Sources Viola arvensis H&C B&B = Britton, N. L. and A. Brown (1913) Viola canadensis H&C Viola epipsila LK H&C = Hitchcock, C. L., A. Cronquist, M. Viola glabella H&C Ownbey, and J. W. Thompson (1955-69) Viola macloskeyi H&C LK = Linda Kershaw. Viola nephrophylla H&C Viola nutallii B&B Viola orbiculata H&C Viola palustris H&C Viola pedatfda B&B Viola praemorsa H&C Viola renifolia H&C Viola selkirkii B&B Viola tricolor B&B Viola vallicola H&C

Index Viola 3 adunca 4 arvensis 4 canadensis 4 epipsila 3 glabella 4 macloskeyi 3 nephrophylla 3 nuttallii 4 orbiculata 3, 4 palustris 3 pedatifda 3 praemorsa 5 renifolia 3 selkirkii 3 tricolor 4 vallicola 5 Violaceae 3

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