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English Bedding Violas These violas have long been appreciated by gardeners in the U.K. and are not well known in the U.S. Although they closely resemble pansies, they are much better, by the facts that they are truly perennial and often have a sweet, strong fragrance. A trait of theirs is to "stool," meaning that the plant branches underground to form a multi-stemmed plant. It is very easy to produce additional new plants by digging up an older plant and gently pulling apart these rooted, formerly underground stems, and replanting several from what had been one plant.
Androse Gem This one, along with five others listed here, has smaller flowers,  that stand up to extreme summer heat better than the larger-flowered bedding violas.
Better Times This old variety dates back to the era of the Great Depression. Lamb Nurseries in Spokane, Washington kept this variety from disappearing from the scene for many years. Has very large, round flowers and is very nicely scented.
Boughton Blue At first glance, 'Boughton Blue' is not anyones' first choice because it is more modest than the other bedding violas. However it has such a tough constitution that I bet this will outlive most of the others. We have seen it survive with minimal care -- no watering during our dry summers and no weeding, and it has continued to flower nicely each summer for at least five years !
Delicia Several of the bedding violas here have similar coloring of cream blending to violet at the edges. Of those, this has smaller flowers. Although small, they come in quantity. And very nicely scented too.
Etain This is the easiest to find of the bedding violas. Generally available across the country. Although it is more common, it cannot be seen too often, and I never tire of it.
Fiona Small, demure and lovely.
Irish Molly Unique in coloring, which can compliment and add a bit of sophistication to a mixed container planting. Sometimes this can be easy to find in nurseries, but more often the opposite.
Joel Strom Joel is strongly colored with a center of rich gold, and rich purplish on the edge. Named for the grandfather of an Oregon nuseryman, Bert Rokey.
Little David Large groups of small flowers.
Maggie Mott Possibly my favorite in this group of plants. The reason being its soft and rich coloring in a large flower. In the past and possibly still today, it was grown in many a British garden. Since our climate is much like that of the British Isles (only two seasons in the year -- spring and autumn !), it would be a good choice for our gardens.
Magic What is magical about this flower is that it begins spring with different colors, than it ends the season. It begins two-toned of cream and violet, but looses the violet altogether as the weather warms up, becoming completely creamy.
Major Primrose A flower of similar coloring to 'Delicia' although this is larger.
Merlin Small and darkly colored in purple and lavender. It has a great set of "whiskers," and lots of charm and personality.
Mount Spokane This was introduced by Lamb Nurseries many years ago. Has very large white flowers that may have a light shading of violet on the backs of the petals, and sometimes can have some violet on the frontside. Sweetly scented. You should know that the weather, whether it is cooler or warmer, and the season can change the coloring on many of these violas. The change is not permanent, and it is part of the charm of these plants.
Painted Porcelain Sometimes this flower is close to pure cream and other times it is strongly colored in mixed shades of violet.
Purple Showers Large, ruffly flowers of solid purple. As with the others, this blooms a very long time, with a rich, dark color that doesn't change. And it is very vigorous.
Rebecca Medium to large flowers of cream, with an edging of purple irregularly splashed on.
The next two are spring-flowering only:
Viola odorata 'Sylvetta' Very small, very fragrant and very early blooming.
Viola odorata 'King of the Doubles' Very small, very fragrant and very early blooming also.
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