2019 June Plant of the Month BWSR Featured Plant Name: Downy yellow violet (Viola pubescens) Plant family: Violet (Violaceae) Downy yellow Downy yellow violet, AKA hairy yellow violets are an important early violet or smooth yellow violet, is food source for a short (4- to 12-inch-tall), native, pollinators. Fine hairs along the herbaceous perennial that blooms in rounded teeth woodlands, gardens edge of the leaf are a distinguishing and shady areas Plant Stats feature. Brown lines starting in April. It STATEWIDE on the flower petals provides an early lead pollinators to WETLAND nectar and pollen. splash of color and INDICATOR Photo Credits: important early STATUS: FACU Heather Holm season nectar and PRIMARY USES: pollen. Like other Ground cover, shade/pollinator Viola species, this gardens, edibles, plant produces both woodland showy, open cross- restorations pollinating flowers at the top of the plant, and fully closed, self-pollinating flowers that may be found aboveground or underground. The showy flowers bloom before trees leaf out. The closed flowers bloom once the tree canopy leafs out. Planting Recommendations Range Downy yellow violets and can be used as Downy yellow violet is found may not be as an alternative to turf throughout Minnesota. Records aggressive as some grass, along paths and exist in all but a handful of other violets in a woodland borders, counties. It is mostly found east garden, but will spread and can be mixed with of the Missouri River, with a few over time in ideal other short woodland records west of the Missouri. conditions — part plants such as sedges, Its range stretches into New shade and medium to anemones and wild England and north into central dry soils. Plants can be geranium. Seeds, bare- and eastern Canada. This divided and moved to root stock and potted plant grows in open woods in new areas. They make plants are available at mesic to dry conditions, and a great ground cover native plant nurseries. Range map source: USDA/Natural in floodplains along rivers and Resources Conservation Service Plants streams. Database www.bwsr.state.mn.us 1 Uses Identification Many invertebrates use The three-quarter-inch, showy yellow downy yellow violet. flowers have five petals with purple or Mason bees, carpenter brown vein-like lines. The lower petal bees, digger bees, sweat will have several lines; the other petals bees, mining bees, bee will have few to none. Flowers rise flies, small butterflies and from a stem that extends from a leaf skippers visit the flowers axil. Individual plants produce one to a for nectar and pollen. few showy flowers. The closed flowers Violets are the host plant (cleistogamous) lack petals and look A metallic green sweat bee enters the violet flower upside down to reach nectar at the bottom of the for fritallary butterfly like buds that never open. Both types of flower, which transfers pollen to the bee.Photo species. Adult fritallaries flowers produce three-part seed capsules Credit: Heather Holm lay their eggs next to or on containing many small brownish to pale violets. When caterpillars white seeds, which can be ballistically wide, and similarly long. The stem emerge, they feed on scattered or spread by ants. This plant leaves are somewhat smaller and more the violets. If you mow has both basal leaves and leaves on the elongated. Both types of leaves are violets in your yard, you stem. Basal leaves are 1.5 to 3 inches heart-shaped with rounded teeth. may be destroying fritillary butterfly caterpillars. The seeds of violets have a Similar Species protein-rich structure The three-quarter-inch, called an elaiosome. This yellow flowers with five structure is relished by petals make this violet ants, which carry seeds easy to distinguish from back to their nest, eat the other Minnesota violets, structure and leave the which are violet or white. seed to possibly germinate. Our only other yellow Birds, including mourning violet in the state is the doves, ruffed grouse, wild yellow prairie Violet, Viola turkey and juncos, also nuttallii, which has been eat the seeds. Leaves and found in three western stems are eaten by rabbits, Minnesota counties — chipmunks and turtles. Traverse, Lac Qui Parle and Violets are not a preferred Yellow Medicine. When not food of deer. Edible and in bloom, downy yellow Clockwise from top: Yellow high in vitamins A and C, violets look similar to prairie violets are found in common blue violets, Viola the leaves and flowers remnant prairies. Photo: Katy have been used for their Chayka, Minnesota Wildflowers; sororia, and Canadian white medicinal value. Violets are Common violet Photo: Dan violets, Viola canadensis, Shaw, BWSR; Canadian white used for salads, soups, teas, which can be found in the violet; Photo: Peter M. Dziuk, same areas. jams, cakes and candy. Minnesota Wildflowers References https://chestnutherbs.com/even-violets-need-a-plan-b/ http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/hry_ylviolet.html https://www.friendsofthewildflowergarden.org/pages/plants/yellowviolet.html http://www.naturemanitoba.ca/sites/default/files/DOWNY%20YELLOW%20VIOLET.pdf https://www.americanvioletsociety.org/Members_Only/VioletGazette_V1_4_P5.htm http://www.restoringthelandscape.com/2013/05/pollination-of-downy-yellow-violets.html Developed by Paul Erdmann www.bwsr.state.mn.us 2.