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Viola sempervirens

species of plant

Specimen drawers, botanical folios and brass scientific instruments under study light
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMar 10, 2026
Entity authorityQ7933084
Source-derived summary

Viola sempervirens, known by the common names redwood violet and evergreen violet, is a species in the genus Viola. It is native to the West Coast of the United States and British Columbia, Canada, and grows in closed-cone pine forest, California mixed evergreen forest, Douglas fir forest communities, and very frequently redwood forests.

It is a small herbaceous plant that has leathery purple-spotted green leaves and bright yellow flowers. Often found in wetter regions under tree cover. It blooms in late winter and spring.

Description

Redwood violets are perennial herbs that grow to heights of about 5 cm (10 in).

Leaves are simple, leathery to touch, and about 1-3 cm (1 in) in length. They are cordate-ovate in shape, and are basal, growing from stems attached to the base of the plant.

Flowers have 5 petals, and are bright-yellow to gold in color, with red-purple streaks growing at the base of the bottom 3 petals, with only 1 flower blooming per plant. Each petal can reach only about 5-15 mm (~0.5 in).

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Viola sempervirens” as species of plant. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Viola, sempervirens and species.

Editorial reviewA practical orientation to terminology and classification, particularly when read beside dated observations, specimens or technical literature. The current 172-word lead offers orientation but no explicit four-digit date, so chronology should not be assumed. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Viola, sempervirens and species providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Viola sempervirens”, the useful work is to connect “species of plant” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7933084.

Critical limits

Scientific names, classifications and consensus can change while older terminology persists in catalogues and historical literature. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Viola sempervirens”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Viola sempervirens primary sources, Viola sempervirens archive and Viola research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Viola sempervirens”?
  2. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
  3. Has classification or technical consensus changed since the cited source?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Viola sempervirens” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.