Viola Sorbet XP Lemon Ice Blotch - Viola cornuta

The  Viola cornuta Sorbet XP 'Lemon Ice Blotch' is a new variety of horned violet from the excellent XP series, which brings together robust and compact plants that flower early and abundantly, for months on end. This pretty variety has small bright, white and lemon-yellow flowers, highlighted by beautiful black blotches. This vigorous variety is easy to grow, first appearing with spring bulbs and then flowering at the base of asters late in the season. It is an irreplaceable addition to any balcony or terrace.

Belonging to the Violaceae family, the horned violet, which grows wild in the Pyrenees, is a low perennial plant that has given rise to many hybrids. Often crossed with Viola tricolor, their most famous descendants are garden pansies. The 'Sorbet XP Lemon Blotch' variety is a herbaceous spreading plant that reaches a height of 10 to 15 cm (5.9 in) when flowering. Its dark green, oval, crenated and evergreen leaves form a spreading clump. It is covered with flowers from March to May, and again from October to December. Its flowers resemble those of small pansies but their petals are arranged differently. The two upper petals are upright and pure white, while the other three are inclined downwards, with a black blotch; only the central one is yellow. The plant spreads quite quickly thanks to its root system and also self-sows very easily in the garden, not always true to type.

Horned violets are intended for low beds and borders but also pots and window boxes, where they can be used to create beautiful colour combinations on their own, or with other plants that flower in spring and summer (forget-me-nots, dwarf daffodils, daisies, primroses, tulips, summer and autumn asters, etc.). The flowers of horned violets are edible, so do not hesitate to decorate your plates with one or two flowers, or even sprinkle some on your salads to give them a splash of colour.

Note: Please be aware that our young plant plugs are professional products reserved for experienced gardeners: upon receipt, transplant them as soon as possible, into containers, flowerpots, or directly into flowerbeds.