Viola odorata ‘Queen Charlotte’
(Sweet Violet, 1-litre plant)

Description

Viola odorata ‘Queen Charlotte’ is an enduring heirloom classic for the shade garden that brings unparalleled fragrance and elegant early-season colour to your outdoor spaces. First introduced to cultivation in Germany in 1900 (and so often also seen in its German form, as ‘Königin Charlotte’), this hardy perennial forms a lush, semi-evergreen carpet of bright green, heart-shaped foliage. It has large, aromatic lavender-blue to deep purple flowers that release a gorgeously sweet, traditional parma-violet scent long before most of the garden wakes up. The edible blooms can also be used fresh in salads, candied for cake decorations, or cut for delicate indoor posies.

Plant Details

• Sensory Highlight: Notable for its exceptionally strong, sweet fragrance, which has been prized in the perfume industry for centuries;

• Floral Character: Features elegant, relatively large lavender-blue and purple blooms that appear from late winter through to spring;

• Compact Habit: A low-growing, vigorous mat-forming perennial with a spreading habit that creates a lush carpet of dark-green foliage and serves as an effective, weed-suppressing groundcover;

• Wildlife-Friendly: Sweet violets and their cultivars are officially badged by the RHS as ‘Plants for Pollinators’;

• Heritage Status: A refined cultivar of the British native Viola odorata, blending wild-flower resilience with garden sophistication;

• Size: Maintains a tidy form with an average height of 10–15cm (4–6″) and a lateral spread of 15–30cm;

• Nursery-grown in Cornwall; supplied as established plants in 1-litre containers.