''Viola ocellata'' is a species of
violet known by the common names pinto violet, two-eyed violet, and western heart's ease. It is native to southern
Oregon and northern and central
California, where it occurs in the coastal foothills and mountain ranges. It sometimes grows in
serpentine soil
Serpentine soil is an uncommon soil type produced by weathered ultramafic rock such as peridotite and its metamorphic derivatives such as serpentinite. More precisely, serpentine soil contains minerals of the serpentine subgroup, especially anti ...
s and in
quicksilver
Quicksilver may refer to:
* Quicksilver (metal), the chemical element mercury
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Quicksilver, a bluegrass band fronted by Doyle Lawson
* "Quicksilver" (song), a 1950 hit for Bing Crosby
* ''Quicksilver'' (sound ...
mines.
Description
This
rhizomatous herb produces a hairy erect or decumbent stem measuring long. The leaves have heart-shaped or roughly lance-shaped blades borne on
petioles a few centimeters long. A solitary flower is borne on a long, upright stem. It has five white petals with yellow bases, the lowest three veined with purple and the two lateral ones with purple eyespots. The inside of the flower has long hairs. The outer surfaces, at least of the two upper petals, is usually stained dark red or purple. It capsules are spherical and are long while its peduncles are puberulent and are long. The seeds of the plant are brownish-purple in colour and are long. The
rootstocks are often long and
stolon
In biology, stolons (from Latin '' stolō'', genitive ''stolōnis'' – "branch"), also known as runners, are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external s ...
-like.
The species is a host plant of the butterfly ''
Boloria epithore''.
References
External links
Jepson Manual TreatmentPhoto gallery
ocellata
Flora of California
Flora of Oregon
Taxa named by Asa Gray
Taxa named by John Torrey
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Violaceae-stub