by Linda Ann Nickerson

Created on: March 08, 2007   Last Updated: November 21, 2009

Violas: Johnny-Jump-Ups

Violas (or Johnny Jump-Ups) are the volunteers of the garden. Plant a few violas this year, and these hardy flowers will spring up in unexpected spots of your landscaping for many years to come.

Because violas seed themselves, it is not unusual for a gardener to find violas returning in areas where they were not even planted previously, such as between bricks and inside cozy patio corners. Violas simply pop up in the spring and display their cheery colors.

Violas actually grow wild in the Southern Hemisphere, although they have become extremely popular in Northern continents as well.

Purchasing Violas

Gardeners may begin growing violas from seeds or purchase viola seedlings for transplanting. At the garden store, you will most likely find viola flowers sold in planting flats as annuals. Although violas may be sold as annuals, many gardeners know that violas often behave more like perennials, returning year after year.

Some stores may even label violas as pansies, although they are not exactly the same. Violas have smaller blooms and fuller foliage, and they tend to be hardier than pansies. Also, pansies truly are annuals, but violas will reproduce each year. This makes violas a wonderful alternative for the home gardener.

Violas flourish heartily in the spring, as they tend to fade away a bit in the hottest days of summer, particularly in full sunlight. In mid-summer, if the plants become a bit straggly, a gardener may cut viola plants back to produce a second growth spurt and blooming later in the season.

Viola Varieties

Fragrant flowering violas may be found in purple, lilac, yellow, gold, white, cream, blue or other colors. Multi-colored violas are also available.

Planting Violas

Violas are easy to grow in beds or containers. They do not mind crowding, so violas make excellent filler plants for flowering window-boxes and patio pots. Planted generously, violas also make a colorful ground cover in the garden.

Although they may become available at retail nurseries early in the spring, it is safest to plant violas after the last frost has passed. In the Northern U.S. states, for example, this is usually around the second week of May.

Once established, violas will grow quite well with very little cultivating or maintenance. Watering and weeding are all violas may need. Violas prefer full to partial sun, and they tolerate a variety of soils. Of course, removing wilted blossoms will extend the blooming of violas, but this will minimize their reseeding for the following year.

Violas in the Kitchen

The dainty and delightful viola flowers are even edible. Chefs love to incorporate ornamental violas in salads and as garnishes for fine cuisine. The viola flowers are also used to make perfumes, liqueurs and herbal medicinals.

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