FLOWER OF THE WEEK AT SOPCHOPPY DEPOT PARK

WHITE WOOD VIOLET



White Wood Violets thrive in shady woods.

By LYNN ARTZ and SANDY TEDDER

Although most violets are purple, colors vary and white-flowered violets also brighten the Florida landscape.  White wood violet is the white form of the common wood violet (Viola sororia). Its flowers are white except for violet lines radiating from the throat of the flower onto the lower petal. Like all wood violets, its heart-shaped leaves feed the caterpillars of fritillary butterflies. This long-lived groundcover thrives in partly shady woods.  It prefers humus-rich, moisture-retentive soils. It spreads by seed and vegetatively to form colonies. The whitest wood violets at Sopchoppy Depot Park are blooming now along the east border and in the northeast garden. Other wood violets with varied coloring are blooming in the northwest garden.