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Marsh Blue Violet

Viola cucullata

Found in bogs, seeps, margins of spring branches. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

79
Strong

Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 88%

Height
5–10 inches
Light
Dappled sunlight, Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves · Bloom

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 17 Alabama counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 123 animals.

All wildlife of Alabama

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

21CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Viola

  • Euptoieta claudiaVariegated Fritillary
  • Agrotis gladiariaSwordsman Dart, Clay-Backed Cut-Worm
  • Agrotis venerabilisVenerable Dart, Dusky Cut-Worm
  • Apantesis naisNais Tiger Moth
  • Archips purpuranaOmnivorous Leafroller Moth
  • Argynnis cybeleGreat Spangled Fritillary, Variegated Fritillary
  • Argynnis dianaVariegated Fritillary
  • Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
  • Elaphria grataGrateful Midget
  • Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
Show all 21
  • Eubaphe mendicaThe Beggar
  • Eupsilia vinulentaStraight-Toothed Sallow
  • Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Herpetogramma thestealisZigzag Herpetogramma, Subtle-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Hypercompe scriboniaGiant Leopard Moth, Great Leopard Moth
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Spodoptera dolichosSweetpotato Armyworm, Dolichos Armyworm, Large Cotton Armyworm
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
  • Udea rubigalisCelery Leaftier
  • Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
16BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Viola

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Viola

  • Andrena violae
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
8BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Viola

  • Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
  • Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
  • Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Pooecetes gramineusVesper Sparrow
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Flies 1
  • Bombylius pulchellus

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Adult butterflies / moths 4
  • Thanaos brizo
  • Thanaos juvenalis
  • Thanaos martialis
  • Vanessa huntera

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Violaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–7b
Soil pH
Neutral
Flower color
Green, purple or white

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
  • Flower color · “Green, purple or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
  • Hardiness · “Zones 3a–7b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “5–10 inches” · Tennessee Smart Yards (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Minnesota Wildflowers differ) · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Dappled sunlight (shade through upper canopy all day); Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differ)
  • Soil · “Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differ)
  • Soil pH · “Neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as

Bog Violet

Conservation status

Alabama rankSNR
Global rankG5
AL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

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How to check your spot

Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources