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| Viola sororia |
Viola sororia, also known as the Common Blue Violet, is a stemless herbaceous perennial plant that is native to eastern North America. It is known by a number of common names including; Common Meadow Violet, Purple Violet, Woolly Blue Violet, Hooded Violet and Wood Violet.
The species name was formerly Viola papilionacea.
It is the state flower of Wisconsin, Illinois, Rhode Island, and New Jersey.
In lawns and gardens, it can become a weed.
Uses
Beyond its use as a common lawn and garden plant, Viola sororia has historically been used for food and for medicine. The flowers and leaves are edible, and some sources suggest the roots can also be eaten. The Cherokee used it to treat colds and headaches. Rafinesque, in his Medical Flora, a Manual of the Medical Botany of the United States of North America(1828-1830), wrote of Viola sororia being used by his American contemporaries for coughs, sore throats, and constipation.
References
- Viola sororia from the Connecticut Botanical Society
- Viola sororia from the Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide
- 2003-04 Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations: 1.10 State song, state ballad, state waltz, state dance, and state symbols.
- Duke, James. 1992. Handbook of Edible Weeds. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
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