Viola pinetorum
Mountain yellow violet, Mountain Yellow Violet
(c) Jim Morefield, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Violaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Viola pinetorum (Mountain yellow violet) is a native California herb in the Violaceae family.
Mountain yellow violet is a California native perennial found in alpine and subalpine habitats at elevations of 1,300 to 3,700 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces deep lemon-yellow flowers with distinctive red to purple-brown upper petals and dark brown veining on lower petals. Growing with prostrate to erect stems 4.5 to 22 centimeters tall, it forms clusters from woody underground rhizomes. Its leaves vary from linear to elliptic or oblanceolate, with thin blades 1.3 to 5 centimeters long that are jagged or irregularly serrate, occasionally with wavy edges. The plant produces small ovoid fruits 3.5 to 7 millimeters long, with seeds in medium to dark brown tones.
Habitat and range
California counties: Kern, San Bernardino, Mono, Los Angeles, Placer, Inyo, Tuolumne, Ventura, San Diego, El Dorado, Amador, Mariposa, Tulare, Sierra, Nevada, Fresno
How to tell it apart
vs Asarum: Viola flowers sit above ground on stalks; Asarum flowers hide at ground level under heart-shaped leaves.; vs Cardamine: Viola has irregular flowers with a spur; Cardamine has 4-petaled symmetrical flowers.; vs Lycianthes: Viola flowers have a backward spur; Lycianthes has star-shaped flowers with no spur.; vs Pelargonium: Viola has a petal-derived spur; Pelargonium has a sepal-derived spur fused to the flower stalk.; vs Eschscholzia: Viola has 5 petals with one forming a spur; Eschscholzia has 4 separate fan-shaped petals.
Frequently asked questions
Is Viola pinetorum native to California?
Yes. Viola pinetorum is native to California (recorded as native).
Where in California does Viola pinetorum grow?
Viola pinetorum occurs in Kern, San Bernardino, Mono, Los Angeles, Placer, Inyo, Tuolumne, Ventura and other counties.
What plant family does Viola pinetorum belong to?
Viola pinetorum is in the Violaceae family, genus Viola.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.