Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Rooted rosettes often develop into erect, rhizomatous caudex from which new stolons are produced; rhizome thick, fleshy.

Stems: Rhizomes 0.5–2" long, knobby, not or only weakly producing stolons, stolons green, often rooting at nodes.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Alternate. Blades broadly ovate–cordate, 3.0–3.6 cm ≈ 3.2–6.0 cm. Apex bluntly pointed. Base cordate. Surfaces sparsely puberulous or subglabrous. Margins crenate, ciliate. Petioles 2–17 cm. Stipules inconspicuous or ostipules lanceolate to linear–lanceolate, margins fimbriate, projections gland–tipped, apex acute.

Flowers: Flowers in early–season flowers on scapes up to 10 cm tall, fragrant; late–season flowers commonly produced, on scapes 1.25–2.5 cm tall. Flowers bisexual (perfect). Calyx of 5 sepals, sepals greenish purple, narrow to broadly lanceolate, margins ciliate, auricles 3–4 mm. Corolla to 2.5 cm in diameter, not circular in outline, violet, corolla of 5 petals, lowermost petals spurred, spur usually same color as petals, lateral pair of petals bearded or glabrous; (Corolla (petals) absent on late season flowers). Stamens 5; filaments short; anthers dithecal, opening by longitudinal slits. Ovary superior, 3-carpellate, 1-celled; ovules numerous per placenta, placentation parietal; anatropous; style 1.

Fruit: Fruit globose capsules; ca. 5–8 mm; puberulent; not explosive; sometimes purple–flecked; ovoid. Seeds numerous; brown; 3–4 mm; with fleshy; oily endosperm.

Ploidy: 2n = 20

Habitat:

Elevation Range: