Viola verecunda
A. Gray
North China violet
(c) Stargazer, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Stargazer, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Stargazer, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Flowers, Leaves
Young leaves and flower buds have a sweetish flavour and can be eaten raw or cooked. They thicken soups in a similar way to okra. The leaves can also be brewed into a tea.
Where to Find It
A temperate and subtropical plant.
Asia, China, Indochina, Japan, Korea, SE Asia, Vietnam,
How to Identify
A herb. It keeps growing from year to year. The aerial stems are 8-15 cm long. The rootstock is erect and 2 cm long. The leaves are kidney shaped. They are in rings. They are 1-4 cm long. The flowers are white or lilac. They occur singly on erect stems.
How to Grow
Prefers a cool moist well-drained humus-rich soil in partial or dappled shade and protection from scorching winds. Tolerates sandstone and limestone soils but becomes chlorotic if the pH is too high. Prefers a pH between 6 and 6.5. All members of this genus have more or less edible leaves and flower buds, though those species with yellow flowers can cause diarrhoea if eaten in large quantities.
Propagation: Sow seed in autumn in a cold frame for best results; stored seed can be sown in early spring in a cold frame. Prick seedlings into individual pots once large enough to handle and plant out in summer. Divide plants in autumn or just after flowering. Larger divisions can go directly into their permanent positions, though smaller divisions do better potted up and grown on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame until established, then planted out in summer or the following spring.
Medicinal Uses
The leaves are crushed and applied as a poultice to cuts, swellings, ulcers, and wounds.
Other Uses
None known.
Wikipedia
Source ↗A perennial violet growing to 12 inches tall. Flowers appear April to May with seeds maturing July to August. Insect-pollinated with hermaphroditic flowers. Adapts to sandy, loamy, or clay soils with good drainage and prefers mildly acidic to neutral conditions. Tolerates semi-shade or full sun provided soil remains consistently moist.
Notes
There are about 500 Viola species.
Names & Synonyms
Hoa-tim khiem, Jin cai, Wild violet, Xiao du yao
References (7)
- Arora, R. K., 2014, Diversity in Underutilized Plant Species - An Asia-Pacific Perspective. Bioversity International. p 46
- Hu, Shiu-ying, 2005, Food Plants of China. The Chinese University Press. p 563
- Mem. Amer. Acad. Arts ser. 2, 6:382. 1858
- Pham-Hoang Ho, 1999, An Illustrated Flora of Vietnam. Nha Xuat Ban Tre. p 552
- Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/
- READ,
- Wujisguleng, W., & Khasbagen. K., 2010, An integrated assessment of wild vegetable resources in Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region, China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 6:34
