Violets of Hope

Mother Nature offered me some solace this week. I haven't posted a blog of late because I've been distracted, feeling anxious and sad for my darling daughter Jane Donnelly Balter, who was recently diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. She is now set on a course that should bring her healing in time, but only after she must bear months of onerous side effects from the treatments. So my heart has been heavy, even when feeling hopeful. But I felt a surge of happiness yesterday when I found two very rare violets, just where I hoped I would find them.  And these are violets that must endure the ravages of both sub-zero winters and raging spring floods, just as my daughter must now bear the ravages of chemotherapy.  And still these violets survive to bloom again! I am one of the few very lucky folks who know where they grow, so I'm happy to share their beauty here, for folks who will probably never see them. 

This purple violet is the New England Violet (Viola novae-angliae), an Endangered species known from only one location in all of New York State, and (despite the name) absent from all New England states except for rare sightings in Maine. 

The New England Violet might be overlooked as simply one of our more common purple violets, unless it was observed more closely. The long tapering leaves are an important distinction, as are the fine hairs that sprout, not just from the throat, but also from the face of the petals. There are other distinctions, too, but they are not so easily photographed.

This white violet is the Primrose-leaved Violet (Viola primulifolia), a Threatened species in New York.

The Primrose-leaved Violet is not only a Threatened species in New York State,  it was an especially unexpected find in Warren County, many counties away from other known populations in the state. Its beardless white flowers resemble the flowers of other, less-rare spring-blooming white violets, but the distinctive shape of its leaves is among the features that set it apart. The egg-shaped leaves are all basal, the blade twice as long as wide, tapering to a dull point at the tip, nearly straight at the base, the upper stalk narrowly winged. Leaf edges are typically scalloped but may be nearly toothless. Leaves and stems are generally hairless except for a few sparse, compressed hairs along the lower leaf veins and sometimes on the flower stem.