Viola indica from Dhanaulti, Uttarakhand

[Tabish]

Viola indica from Dhanaulti, Uttarakhand

found blooming in April.

  Cheers!

  Tabish

[J.M. Garg]

Hi, Tabish ji,

I have doubts about the 1st image. I am afraid it may be Viola pilosa

Do you have side view of the 2nd image ? If so, pl. post.

Do you have the keys between say Viola indica and Viola pilosa/ Viola canescens ?

Hi, Ashwini ji,

Do you have the keys between say Viola indica and Viola pilosa/ Viola canescens ?

I could not find them on net.

I found only 2 specimen of Viola indica in GBIF, but here also flowers are not clear.

https://api.gbif.org/v1/image/unsafe/http%3A%2F%2Fmediaphoto.mnhn.fr%2Fmedia%2F1441437200103o0MlGX1JPP3bIgHm

https://api.gbif.org/v1/image/unsafe/https%3A%2F%2Fmedialib.naturalis.nl%2Ffile%2Fid%2FL.2455167%2Fformat%2Flarge

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[Ashwini Bhatia]

Unfortunately I am unable to find much information on Viola indica as well. Tabish ji’s flower looks a lot like our flowers here (which we have been discussing under V. pilosa).

Thank you.

Ashwini

<Viola indica-2.jpg><Viola indica-1.jpg>

[J.M. Garg]

Hi, Ashwini ji,

Don't you have the keys and details in the books you may be having like Flora simlensis etc. ?

[Ashwini Bhatia]

Dear Mr. Garg,

Flore Simlensis makes no mention of it but Flowers of the Himalaya by Polunin and Stainton does but briefly. Attaching both for reference.

Thanks.

Ashwini

[J.M. Garg]

Thanks a lot, Ashwini ji.

I think Large flowers with stout hooked spur to 1 cm, may be the key.

So we have to see the clear view of the spur.

[Ashwini Bhatia]

I have checked that already and our flowers never have a spur longer than 6mm unless I am measuring incorrectly. If someone can guide me how to measure the spur correctly, I can still find a couple of flowers and measure again.

Our flowers are not fragrant as well.

Attaching side view of the spur.

Thanks.

Ashwini

[J.M. Garg]

Also Viola patrinii reported in Flora Simlensis, may actually be not found in India as per Flora of China, which gives both Viola patrinii and Viola betonicifolia and as Flora of Pakistan gives only Viola betonicifolia Sm. in Rees with Viola patrinii auct. non DC. as a syn.

On Wed, 8 Apr 2020 at 13:35, J.M. Garg <jmg...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Ashwini Bhatia]

Again does not match our species. The leaves on V. betonicifolia are narrow as per the description and photos on our site.

[J.M. Garg]

Thanks, Ashwini ji.

This spur appears a bit hooked and interesting. Book says spur to 1 cm- I think meaning up to 1 cm.

Pl. post corresponding leaves and flower front view.

[J.M. Garg]

Hi, Tabish ji,

Do you have any other literature on Viola indica, other than Flowers of the Himalaya by Polunin and Stainton ?

[Tabish]

Unfortunately not. But India Biodiversity Portal also has a description. Also, the first image looks a bit different, I think, just because the petals have curled back - probably a more mature flower. I included this picture because the spur is partly visible here. This picture is of the same group of plants that we found in Dhanaulti, and was taken at the same time as the second pic.

  I attach another one with the spur visible.

   Tabish

-------------------------------------------
www.flowersofindia.net
The waterhole of flower lovers

[Ashwini Bhatia]

Thank you Tabish ji. Do you remember if your flowers had aroma?

Regards,

Ashwini

[Tabish]

Sorry, never checked the smell. After identifying it as Viola indica, was regretting not doing so. But the flower size agrees, 1.5-2 cm.

  Tabish

-------------------------------------------
www.flowersofindia.net
The waterhole of flower lovers

[Ashwini Bhatia]

Thanks.

Regards,

Ashwini

[J.M. Garg]

Thanks, Tabish ji.

It gives very good description.

Hi, Ashwini ji,

Pl. check your posts with this description other than odour:

Perennial herb, stoloniferous, about 5-12 cm tall. Roots rhizomatous, slender, short, stout and densely articulated. Stolons leafy and flowering up to 20 cm long. Stem absent or acaulescent. Leaves simple, basal, ovate-lanceolate to ovate-oblong, about 2-6 x 1.5-4 cm across, base cordate, margin crenate-serrate, apex deeply acute to subacuminate, glabrous to sparsely pubescent, stipules lanceolate-ovate, margin entire, apex acuminate, persistent, petiole slender, slightly winged above, up to 10 cm long. Flowers bisexual, zygomorphic, voilet or purplish with dark striations, fragrant, about 1.2-1.5 cm across, on long axillary pedicels, equal or longer than petioles, about 3-11 cm long, usually dimorphic (normal and cleistogamous flowers), bi-bracteolate about the middle, sepals 5, subequal, ovate-lanceolate to oblong, base usually auriculate, margins scarious or ciliate, persistent, about 4-6 x 1-2 mm across, petals 5, subequal, oblong-ovate, spreading, about 1.5 cm long, lateral ones smooth, not bearded at the base, lower petal largest, spurred basally, spur stout, slightly curved upwards, about 8 mm long. Stamens 5, hypogynous, filaments short, anthers 2 loculed. Ovary superior, ovoid-globose, sessile, 3 carpellary, glabrous, about 2 mm long, ovules many placentae parietal, style geniculate at base, stigma shortly beaked. Fruit capsule, not seen.

[J.M. Garg]

I agree with your id as spur appears to be longer.  

[Ashwini Bhatia]

Not matching, odour, size and the stipules which are described as:

stipules lanceolate-ovate, margin entire, apex acuminate, persistent,

otherwise it matches our flowers here. 

[J.M. Garg]

Thanks, Ashwini ji

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With regards,
J. M. Garg

[J.M. Garg]

Thanks, Ashwini ji.

Flowers of Himalayas gives flower size as 2 cm compared to 1-1.5 cm across given here.

Stipules are not mention in the Flowers of Himalayas. So may not be key feature. Further, we have seen stipules are quite variable and differing in different sources for other species.

Mostly descriptions are written from specimens, I do not know how come odour has been mentioned in the books. Also this is one character, which is quite subjective and may vary from one individual to another.

In all, we may take such plants from Himachal as Viola indica, for the time being, being closest to it among all other species recorded here.

[Ashwini Bhatia]

Thank you Mr. Garg. This is precisely the reason why this genus is giving us so much trouble. I have trawled through the FOC pdf file on Viola and think even the species at the link is a close match but not quite there:

http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=250073309

Perhaps we could have it listed as indica with 'tentative' in the brackets to alert the user. We can give reasons for it being uncertain.

The descriptions in different floras vary in precision and quality as can be expected. Also, tackling hundreds of species in one volume does not allow the author to give the time demanded by each individual plant.

Thanks.

Ashwini

[J.M. Garg]

Thanks, Ashwini ji.