1337 Viola tricolor L.

This variable species was originally restricted to Europe and adjacent parts of Africa and Asia. It has spread with cultivation and settlement within and outside this area, for instance to India, the Philippines, N. America (more than the map shows) and New Zealand. The population in S. Russia is distinguished as subsp. matutina (Klok.) Valent. The closely related V. vespertina Klok. occurs in Caucasus. Cf. also Meusel et al. 1978, map p. 294.