Viola macroceras Bunge

Herbs perennial, acaulescent, 5-14 cm tall, glabrous or sparsely puberulous. Rhizome obliquely ascending or erect, short, with few whitish fibrous roots. Leaves basal; stipules dense in upper part of rhizome, white, ovate-lanceolate, membranous, ca. 1/2 adnate to petiole, margin entire or sparsely long fimbriate, apex acute; petiole 1-8 cm, to 14 cm at fruiting; leaf blade cordate or ovate-cordate, 1.5-4.5 × 1-3 cm, base shallowly or deeply cordate, usually cuneate and decurrent to petiole, margin shallowly crenate, apex acute, larger at fruiting, to 6 × ca. 4 cm. Flowers purple-violet or blue-purple, fragrant; pedicels 4-9 cm, 2-bracteolate at middle; bracteoles 4-6 mm. Sepals narrowly elliptic or ovate-lanceolate, 5-6 × 2-2.5 mm, apex obtuse, basal auricles short, apex obtuse, glabrous. Petals 1-1.2 cm, lateral ones bearded; spur 4-6 mm, stout, slightly curved upward or nearly straight. Ovary glabrous; styles clavate, base slightly geniculate, gradually thickened upward; stigmas flat at top, with obtuse margin on lateral sides and abaxially, shortly beaked in front, with an upward stigma hole at tip of beak. Capsule ellipsoid, 7-9 mm, glabrous, apex obtuse. Seeds brown or red-brown, large. Fl. Apr-Jun, fr. Aug-Sep.

Perennial, 5-15 cm high herb. Stem absent. Rhizome short. Roots branched. Leaves 1.5-5.0 x 0.8-3.2 cm, upto 6.0 x 4.0 cm during fruiting, ovate-broad ovate, cordate with a deep sinus, shortly cuneate, glabrous, crenate-serrate or dentate, obtusish; petiole winged, glabrous; stipules membranous, lanceolate, acuminate, adnate till middle, fimbriate, 0.8-1.5 x 0.3-0.6 cm. Flowers medium sized, scented, purplish to rosaceous, lilac or rarely white. Sepals 3.5-6.5 x 1.5-3.0 mm, ovate-oblong, obtusish. Petals 10-12 x 2.5-5.0 mm, lateral petal bearded; lower part turned into spur, spur straight or subcurvate, 5-7 mm long, obtuse; ovary glabrous, ovate-globose; style clavate, thickened towards summit, shortly beaked. Capsule 6-10 mm long, glabrous, ellipsoid, obtuse.

Xinjiang [Kashmir, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russia (W Siberia), Tajikistan, Uzbekistan].

Distribution: Pakistan, Afghanistan & URSS.

Fl. Per.: March-June.

Alpine meadows, stony slopes; below 1500 m.