Wild Pansy - Viola tricolor

Alternative names
Heartsease
Description

Low to short plant, stems erect or ascending. Flowers purple, violet blue, yellow and white, very variable. 10 to 25 mm, the spur 3 to 5 mm.

Similar Species

Garden Pansy Viola x wittrockiana

Identification difficulty
ID guidance

Garden pansies can be very similar in colour.  The Wild Pansy is smaller (usually less than 2.5cm across) and the petals only overlap slightly.

Recording advice

A photo of the plant in habitat is needed, plus a note of the flower width and the habitat in which it was found  (RPR)

Habitat

Rough grassland, arable and cultivated land and waste places.

When to see it

April to October.

Life History

Annual or short lived perennial.

UK Status

Infrequent now in Britain.

VC55 Status

Rare as a true native in Leicestershire and Rutland; in urban areas and near habitation is is likely to originate from a garden source.

It is listed on the current VC55 Rare Plant Register (Hall and Woodward 2022) as Locally Rare (i.e. present in less than 3 sites)

 

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2020+ | 2015-2019 | pre-2015

UK Map

Species profile

Common names
Wild Pansy, Heartsease
Species group:
Wildflowers
Kingdom:
Plantae
Order:
Malpighiales
Family:
Violaceae
Records on NatureSpot:
2
First record:
25/06/2012 (Calow, Graham)
Last record:
06/05/2015 (Cunningham, Sally)

Total records by month

% of records within its species group

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