I think something finally sank in about violas and pansies in the Violas group

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I think something finally sank in about violas and pansies

Alannah
0 plants 8

I finally realise the difference between violas and pansies. I always knew they were slightly different, pansy flowers are usually much bigger, many have a blotch (not all, for instance, Pansy ‘Clear Crystals’) and I also knew they were botanically all violas. But now I have just realised how to tell the difference beyond that:
the viola runs along the ground, producing new plantlets as it goes, which makes it possible to separate portions for replanting, much easier than taking cuttings. The Pansy foliage, which is usually larger to look at and longer in shape, does not produce plantlets from what I can see, so cuttings would be nearly obligatory for vegetative propagation. Now I understand why violas were once called ‘tufted pansies’.

If anyone thinks differently, do let me know. Maybe the pansy does produce offsets, I will watch to see if this is true (until last week I have not grown pansies for years) but if so it is a much slower occurrence.

2 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
orientallily

822 plants 6a

I didn’t realise there was that (the plantlets) distinction. In flower shows, we usually just go by the size of the flowers with pansies being the larger of the two. And then of course, just to add a little more confusion, there are the mini-pansies which are neither large like regular ones nor small like violas.
2 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Alannah

0 plants 8

I never heard of mini-pansies. I know about violettas, a type of viola, and once again, I’ll have to find out what the difference is.
1 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Amarylis
Folia Helper

147 plants 8a

Well that’s interesting! I’ve grown both Pansies & Violas but never knew (or noticed/seen) that Violas make runners! But then I grow them on a balcony in pots on my railings so they have nowhere to root even if they do make runners! I know Violets make runners though!

You might be interested in reading about Violas on Wikipedia:

“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viola_%28plant%29

& pansies also:
bq. The common words “pansy” and “viola” are often confused. Pansies have four petals pointing upwards, and only one pointing down. Violas have three petals pointing up and two pointing down
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pansy
3 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Alannah

0 plants 8

Hi Amarylis, thanks for the links. I never knew that about the petals Now it’s dark so I will have to wait until morning to go and take a look at mine. We will have quite a list of the differences between the two plants by the time we are finished.
2 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Amarylis
Folia Helper

147 plants 8a

I’ve always distinguished them from the size of their flowers & their growth habit. It has always seemed pretty obvious to me which is which – even without seeing them together. But I would have been hard pressed to explain to someone who knew nothing about the plants exactly what the differences were! Now I have a new way of identifying them!

Which reminds me that on my allotment, amongst one bed of Strawberries, there is what looks like a wild Pansy, or ‘Heartsease’ as it seems it’s know here in the UK, growing. I saw it a few months ago & left it to grow. The flowers are very, very tiny & the plants growth is very lax & spindly. Not the sort of plant one would normally want in one’s garden! The shape of the leaves & the form of the flowers identify it immediately as belonging to the Viola family. I’d never seen one before! I haven’t taken a photo of it on its own but it must be in some of the photos I took of the Strawberry bed in question – though it’s probably too small to see as I’ve not taken any close up photos of the Strawberries since they were beginning to fruit in June.

I’ve just looked through the photos I have of this Strawberry bed & there is no sign of this wild Pansy.
1 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
orientallily

822 plants 6a

I don’t know if there really is a true way to identify pansies from violas. The picture used for this group, up on the top right hand corner of this page, looks like it has four petals pointing upward and only the one down, like a pansy? But… it’s Viola cornuta Chantreyland. It’s a viola. More confusion…
0 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Alannah

0 plants 8

I suppose they would be general rules. I found one of my pansies had sprouted an offset today, but none of the others have. The foliage is much coarser than that of the viola though, in my opinion, and easy enough to recognize.
2 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Amarylis
Folia Helper

147 plants 8a

I can quite understand your confusion, orientallily! You are right about the picture at the top! I hadn’t particularly looked at it since the definition on Wikipedia.

I’m adding a photo of the Pansies planted out on my balcony last Friday:
2 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
orientallily

822 plants 6a

You know… they keep crossing and re-crossing these plants so there’s bound to be more and more confusion about the whole thing.
0 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago
Alannah

0 plants 8

Yes, and if you grow a big variety of both pansies and violas, seed-grown or otherwise, I figure you’re bound to get some really unusual varieties if you save and sow the seed. I think it’s a bit like the thrill I got as a child from buying a lucky-bag. Then you can name your own plant. In his book ‘Pansies, Violas and Violettas’, Rodney Fuller gives a list of qualities to look for in seedlings: is the plant floriferous, with lots of flowers and flowering for a long time? The flowers should be a nice shape, hold themselves up well so they can be seen, and have a a good consistent colour, I think he means all the flowers should be basically the same colour or colours, not one flower on the plant one sort of colour while others differ; the colour or colours should naturally be attractive and if possible have a noticeably nice scent; the flowers not being easily marked by rain or faded by sun, the foliage should have a nice tidy growth, the plant should be vigorous, not too affected by either cold, heat or wind, the plant should not be too prone to disease, have good perennial qualities, and have a good habit of growth that makes taking cuttings or removing runners easy. I would add that the more striking or unusual the colour the better.
Quite a tall order, isn’t it! But what fun at the same time in trying to achieve those standards. And then taking photos to show-off the results of our endeavours here.
1 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago | Last edited 9 months ago
Amarylis
Folia Helper

147 plants 8a

An update on my post above about the wild Pansy, or Heartsease, growing in the Strawberry bed. Today I was down on the plot & I looked specifically for it. I found it with no trouble & took a couple of photos. The problem is they are not very “photogenic”! I’m uploading one of the 2 pictures I took – the closest of the two. I’ve darkened the picture a little to produce more contrast but even so you may have trouble seeing it.
0 thumbs up!
Posted 9 months ago