This native perennial usually grows less than 8 inches tall with leaves repeatedly divided into narrow, linear segments (A). The deep blue, nodding, five-petaled, 3/4 inch flowers have 3 lower petals which are bearded and white at the base with dark purple veins (A,B).
Grows in moist to dry prairie sites, flowering in May. At Neale Woods, it is uncommon on Tallgrass Prairie Trail in Knull Prairie where it grows on or at the edges of the trail.
Deeply divided leaves separate prairie violet from our woodland species.
The leaves of the prairie violet are the food source for the larvae of an important and threatened prairie butterfly, the Regal Fritillary. It is also called Crowfoot Violet.
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