Violet (plant)

Viola
5-petaled purple, white, and yellow pansies
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Malpighiales
Family:	Violaceae
Subfamily:	Violoideae
Genus:	Viola

The violet is a genus of flowering plants. The common blue violet (Viola sororia) is the state flower of the U.S. state of Illinois. There is also a famous poem that refers to violets. It goes "Roses are red, violets are blue", and then the poet adds his or her own lines to it. It is also February's birth flower.

Some Viola species are perennial plants, some are annual plants, and a few are small shrubs. Many species, varieties and cultivars are grown in gardens for their flowers.

In horticulture, the term pansy is used for the multi-coloured cultivars often used in bedding by professional gardeners. The terms 'viola' and 'violet' are normally used for small-flowered annuals or perennials, and the wild species.

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