Weed of the Month: Wild Violet

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Common name: Wild violet (also blue violet, meadow violet)
Scientific name: Viola papilionacea Pursh
Life Cycle: Perennial
Origin: United States
Poisonous?: No

Wild violet is distributed widely throughout the eastern United States and occurs most frequently in highly maintained pastures, turf grass, and landscapes. This low-growing plant forms dense colonies and thrives in pastures that are frequently mowed. Leaves are heart-shaped, and flowers have five petals in a typical violet shape and are blue to purple in color.

Wild violet

The wild violet reproduces from flowers and stout rhizomes (creeping stems lying, usually horizontally, at or under the surface of the soil and differing from roots in that they have scale leaves, bearing leaves or aerial shoots near their tips, and producing roots from their undersurfaces). Generally, flowers are produced from April through June, but this can vary. This plant is not susceptible to frost and grows readily in the fall and winter, depending on the severity of the winter. There are several other violet species that could be confused with this wild violet.

This plant is very difficult to control. Mowing is ineffective and only a few herbicides will provide partial control. Multiple herbicide treatments are needed for effective total control. Consult your local Cooperative Extension Service personnel for information about herbicidal control in your area.

William W. Witt, PhD, a researcher in Plant and Soil Sciences, provided this information.

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