It is an
annual and ripens its seeds freely, and if opportunity is afforded, it
multiplies rapidly.
_Viola tricolor_ has three subspecies, which have been elevated to the
rank of species by some authors, and which may here be called, for
brevity's sake, by their binary names. One is the typical _V. tricolor_,
with broad flowers, variously colored and veined with yellow, purple and
white. It occurs in waste places on sandy soil. The second is called _V.
arvensis_ or the field-pansy; it has small inconspicuous flowers, with
pale-yellowish petals which are shorter than the sepals. It pollinates
itself without the [40] aid of insects, and is widely dispersed in
cultivated fields. The third form, _V. alpestris_, grows in the Alps,
but is of lesser importance for our present discussion.
Anywhere throughout the central part of Europe _V. tricolor_ and _V.
arvensis_ may be seen, each occupying its own locality. They may be
considered as ranging among the most common native plants of the
particular regions they inhabit. They vary in the color of the flowers,
branching of the stems, in the foliage and other parts, but not to such
an extent as to constitute distinct strains. They have been brought into
cultivation by Jordan, Wittrock and others, but throughout Europe each
of them constitutes a single type.
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