General:
Perennial herb from a rhizome and fibrous roots, without stolons; stems ascending to erect, smooth, leafless except on the uppermost section, 5-20 cm tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves rounded to heart- or kidney-shaped, blunt- to saw-toothed, the blades 0.6-2 cm long, 1-3 cm wide, the stalks 8-16 cm long, hairy above and along the veins; stem leaves similar, the stalks shorter, equal to or longer than the blades; stipules lanceolate, 2-5 mm long, entire.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of single, axillary flowers; petals 5, yellow, the lower petal 9-12 mm long including the 1- to 2-mm long spur; flower stalks with distinctive purple lines; sepals 5, oblong, fringed in the upper half, and with a conspicuous purple-black stripe; style heads smooth.

Fruits:
Capsules, sparsely short-hairy, 8-12 mm long; seeds brown.

Notes:
Hybridizes with V. glabella. The other subspecies, ssp. biflora, is widely distributed in Eurasia and also occurs in AK, YT and CO.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.

Illustration Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Viola biflora L.