From late February to May in shade at the edges of woodland or in hedgerows we can find clumps of sweet violet (viola odorata).
This is our native British plant, usually appearing with flowers of deep to pale lilac to the more rare white.
Leaves are heart shaped and bright green, forming a carpet of ground cover with delicate flowers nodding on short, hairy, pale green stems. The flower has a beautiful and unmistakable perfume, once prized by the Victorians and was the flower of Aphrodite, Greek goddess of love.
Historically, the Sweet Violet has a long tradition of uses, including many medicinal applications. Crushed sweet violets were often strewn on cottage and church floors to mask odours.
The Native Sweet Violet can easily be grown in our gardens, as long as it is given a shaded or semi shaded area with good soil, it can thrive and self seed quite happily.
Seed and plants can be obtained from specialist nurseries such as the Devon Violet Nursery. and Grove Nurseries in West Dorset, where the National collection of Sweet Violets can be found.