Violas - Sweet Dainty Flowers for Partial Sun or Shade

Johnny Jump-Ups, or violas, are the volunteers of the garden. Plant a few this year, and these dainty, delightful flowers will spring up in unexpected spots for years to come!

Gardeners may begin with seeds or purchase seedlings for transplanting. At the garden store, you will most likely find violas sold in planting flats as annuals, although they generally return and flourish for several years. They may be called Johnny jump-ups.

Some stores may even label violas as pansies, although they are not exactly the same. Violas have smaller blooms and fuller foliage, and they tend to be hardier than pansies. (Also, pansies truly are annuals, but violas will reproduce each year. This makes them a wonderful alternative.)

Violas do best in spring, as they tend to fade away in the hottest days of summer. In mid-summer, if the plants become a bit straggly, a gardener may cut the plants back to produce a second growth spurt and blooming later in the season.

They actually grow wild in the Southern Hemisphere, although they have become extremely popular in Northern continents as well.

Varieties

These fragrant and dainty flowers may be found in purple, lilac, blue, yellow, gold, red, apricot, white, or other colors. Hybrids combine hues for a dramatic appearance. Worldwide, there may be up to 500 species.

Planting

Violas are easy to grow in beds or containers. They do not mind crowding, so they are excellent filler plants for window-boxes and patio pots. Planted generously, violas also make a colorful groundcover in the garden.

They prefer partial sun, and they tolerate a variety of soils. Violas require consistent watering.

Although they may become available at retail nurseries early in the spring, it is safest to plant violas after the last frost of the spring. In the Northern U.S. states, for example, this is usually around the second week of May.

Cultivating

Once established, violas will grow quite well with very little maintenance. Watering and weeding are all they need.

Violas are early bloomers in the garden. Of course, removing wilted blossoms will extend blooming, but this will minimize their reseeding for the following year.

Uses

Violas do not last as cut flowers, but the blossoms may be used in salads or poultry stuffing. The flower's essence may be applied for flavoring in baking. For centuries, the Chinese people have derived an herbal tea from them. Because violas tend to carry vitamins A and C, as well as anti-oxidants (anti-carcinogenics) the viola's roots, leaves, and blossoms may be used in herbal medicinals.

Most of all, violas are valuable for their colorful beauty, filling garden spaces with fertile floral glamour.