Viola arvensis Murray
European Field Pansy
Field pansy is a small, branching annual of the violet family, recognised by its modest pansy-shaped flowers that are usually cream or pale yellowish-white, sometimes washed with a little violet on the upper petals and rarely more than a centimetre or two across. Slender stems carry slightly lobed leaves and leafy stipules, giving the plant a wiry, sprawling look as it scrambles among other low vegetation.
About
Field pansy is a small, branching annual of the violet family, recognised by its modest pansy-shaped flowers that are usually cream or pale yellowish-white, sometimes washed with a little violet on the upper petals and rarely more than a centimetre or two across. Slender stems carry slightly lobed leaves and leafy stipules, giving the plant a wiry, sprawling look as it scrambles among other low vegetation. It is a long-established arable companion in Britain rather than a true native, classed as an archaeophyte that arrived with early agriculture.
It favours light, well-drained, disturbed soils and turns up readily in cultivated fields, gravel and sand workings, tracksides, waste ground and other broken ground across much of England, Wales and eastern Scotland. Flowering through the warmer months from spring into autumn, its little blooms offer pollen and nectar to bees and hoverflies and the plant self-seeds freely. It suits cornfield annual mixes and informal patches of bare or recently turned ground rather than dense, settled swards.
Also known as
European Field-pansy · European Wild Pansy · Field Pansy · Field Violet · Wild Pansy
Synonyms
Viola arvensis subpatens · Viola arvensis timbalii · Viola deseglesei · Viola ticolor arvensis · Viola tricolor arvensis · Viola tricolor montana
Beta — under active development. This catalogue is still being built and accuracy-checked. The information here (including plant identifications, British native status, soil and sun/shade preferences) is provided in good faith for general guidance only and may contain errors or omissions. It must not be relied upon on its own — please confirm details with us before making planting, specification, foraging or purchasing decisions, and never eat or medicinally use any plant based on this catalogue alone, as some species are toxic. To the extent permitted by law, Phoenix Amenity Supplies accepts no liability for any loss arising from use of this information.