Viola cucullata
| Viola cucullata | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 0.5' |
| Width: | 0.5' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Mid Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Viola cucullata (common name: marsh blue violet)
Propagation: Seed - best sown in the autumn in a cold frame. Sow stored seed in early spring in a cold frame. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out in the summer.
Division in the autumn or just after flowering. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions, though we have found that it is best to pot up smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame until they are growing away well. Plant them out in the summer or the following spring.
Cultivation: Prefers a cool moist well-drained humus-rich soil in partial or dappled shade and protection from scorching winds. Very intolerant of drought[1]. Succeeds in dense shade[2]. Tolerates sandstone and limestone soils but becomes chlorotic if the pH is too high. Prefers a pH between 6 and 6.5.
This plant produces cleistogamous flowers as well as the usual insect pollinated flowers[1]. It usually self-sows freely[3].
All members of this genus have more or less edible leaves and flower buds, though those species with yellow flowers can cause diarrhoea if eaten in large quantities[4][5][6].
A polymorphic species[3]. there are many named forms, selected for their ornamental value[7].
Range: Eastern N. America - Quebec to Ontario and south to Georgia.
Habitat: Wet places, often in open woods[1]. Wet meadows, springs, bogs, swamps etc[8].
Edibility: Young leaves and flower buds - raw or cooked[9][10]. When added to soup they thicken it in much the same way as okra[5][6][11].
A tea can be made from the leaves[5].
Medicinal: An infusion of the plant has been used in the treatment of coughs, colds and dysentery[12]. A poultice of the leaves has been used to reduce the pain of headaches[12].
A poultice of the crushed root has been applied to boils[12].
Usage: A good ground cover plant but it is slow to thicken up and may need weeding for the first year or so[2].
An infusion of the root has been used to soak corn seeds before planting them in order to keep off insects[12].
Pollinators: Insects, cleistogamous
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: V. cucullata. Ait.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Perennials - The Definitve Reference. Pan Books, 1991.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Napier, Elspeth. Ground Cover Plants. Cassells, 1989.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Brickell, Christopher. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers. Dorling Kindersley Publishers, 1990.
- ↑ Elias, Thomas. A Field Guide to North American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Harrington, Harold. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press, 1967.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 McPherson, Alan and Sue McPherson. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press, 1977.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Lyndon, Merritt. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co, 1950.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.