Viola pinetorum subsp. pinetorum

Family: Violaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Pine violet is a California native perennial found in the Cascade Ranges, Sierra Nevada, western Transverse Ranges, San Bernardino Mountains, and San Jacinto Mountains in vernally moist soils, often under conifer forests at elevations of 1,400 to 3,100 meters. Flowering from late May to late July, this plant produces delicate purple-tinted flowers with petals 6 to 12 millimeters long. Growing with spreading to erect stems 6.5 to 22 centimeters tall, it develops a distinctive plant structure that remains low to the ground. Its leaves are primarily basal, with blades 1.3 to 5 centimeters long, ranging from linear to ovate, often with jagged or irregularly serrate edges and a notable purple tint on the undersides. The plant appears glabrous to slightly hairy, with a canescent (grayish-white) appearance that helps it blend into its high-elevation conifer forest habitat.

Habitat: Vernally moist soil, often under conifers

Bloom period: Late May-late Jul

Elevation: 1400-3100 m

Bioregions: CaR, SN, WTR, SnBr, SnJt.

California counties: San Bernardino, Tulare, Mariposa, Lake, Los Angeles, Ventura, San Diego, Alpine, Kern, Fresno, Mono, Riverside, Inyo, El Dorado, Amador, Placer, Modoc, Tuolumne, Plumas, Butte, Sierra, Nevada, Siskiyou

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.