Plant of the month - viola
One of the cheeriest sights to keep you going until the light finally shifts and the darkest days of winter are behind us is surely the sight of a selection of little violas planted in pots beside your front door, greeting you as you go to and fro.
Violas are very similar to pansies - they belong to the same family of flowers - but violas have slightly smaller blooms. They’re tolerant of cold temperatures, which means they’re often used as annual winter bedding plants. However it’s entirely possible to keep them going as short-lived perennials: cut them back a little and leave them in the soil after they’ve finished flowering. They should come back again in a few months, sometime in the middle of summer, when they can make great low-growing companions for sweet peas or climbing beans.
The wild viola is very recognisable, with its petite purple and yellow petals. It’s known by various common names including ‘heartsease’, ‘tickle-my-fancy’ and ‘Johnny jump-up’.
Cultivated violas are inexpensive and widely available in garden centres and nurseries, but they’re also easy to raise from seed and you can find some more interesting varieties by growing them this way. Modern breeding means they now come in a wide range of colours and shapes, with attractive streaked, spotted or frilled petals. Try ’Antique Shades’, ‘Brush Strokes’ or ‘Terracotta’ if you want something a little different.
One of the best things about violas is that once you have them in your garden, they’ll seed themselves around gently, often in a mixture of cross-pollinated colours, popping up delightfully next to a lettuce or under a row of dahlias. If you’re not happy with their location, dig them out gently and replant into a pot or another part of the garden.
