Japanese name: シハイスミレ（紫背菫） Scientific name:Viola violacea var. violacea
[Overview]
A perennial 3–8 cm tall, found in hills and mountains.
It has a short underground stem.
The leaves extend obliquely and are 2–4 cm long, narrowly ovate-triangular to lanceolate with a heart-shaped base, and purplish on the underside.
The leaf margins have low teeth.
The leaf stalks are 2–10 cm.
The flowers are borne at the tips of flower stalks; they are 1.5 cm across and pale to deep reddish purple.
The lateral petals are usually hairless.
Behind the flower is an upward-curving spur 5–6 mm long.
The fruit is a capsule that splits into 3 when ripe and scatters the seeds.
