Viola Laeta Fire seeds - Viola cornuta

Viola cornuta 'Laeta Fire', also known as Horned Violet or Horned Pansy, produces small flowers, the size of a coin, with vivid and iridescent colours. Its bright yellow flowers are tinged with dark pink on the upper petals, speckled with brownish-purple in the centre. It pairs well with spring bulbs and autumn asters in the garden and is perfect for creating lovely pots. This biennial plant thrives in humus-bearing soil, in partial shade or under dappled sunlight, forming a carpet of dark, evergreen foliage. Its edible flowers bring an elegant touch to pastries.

Belonging to the violet family, the horned violet, which grows wild in the Pyrenees, is a low perennial plant that has given rise to many hybrids, the most famous of which are horticultural pansies. The 'Laeta Fire' variety is a spreading herbaceous plant 10 to 15 cm tall when in flower, with dark green, ovate, and scalloped, evergreen leaves, forming a spreading tuft. Depending on the sowing date, this plant can be covered with flowers from spring to autumn. Its flowers are quite round, resembling pansy flowers, but with a different arrangement of petals. The top two are upright, the other three are downward-facing. It spreads quite rapidly thanks to its rhizomes and also self-seeds very easily in the garden.

Horned violets are ideal for borders, shaded rockeries and the front of low beds, as well as in pots and planters on balconies and terraces. They can be combined with other low spring plants such as Forget-Me-Nots, Primroses, Botanical Tulips, Daisies and small Daffodils. In autumn, they complement the flowering of Asters.

The flowers of horned violets are edible, so you can decorate your plates with one or two flowers, or even add some to your salads for a colourful touch.