I'm a hardy native perennial of Europe, Africa and Asia. Because of my stalked heart-shaped leaves, the ancient Greeks considered me a symbol of love and fertility.

I make a good ground cover because I'm low-mounding and make long runners. My flowers appear in Spring and range from deep purple to pale lavender to white and are sweetly scented. They, as well as my leaves, are edible. My essential oil is used to make delicately scented perfume. Rock gardens, borders and naturalistic settings make happy homes for me.

​After blooming, I develop small seed pods which pop open when they turn brown, scattering my seeds up to six inches away. If they fall on loose, fertile, well-drained, slightly acidic soil, they easily take root, even to the point of becoming slightly invasive. But I'm so pretty, who cares?

Cake decorators often crystallize my flowers with sugar and use me to beautify wedding cakes.

Do you know what plant I am? 
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Viola odorata ( V. Canadensis ) Garden violet, Sweet violet

AHHH, SPRING – FINALLY, (I certainly hope, but am almost afraid to write it :) ) Anyway, I’m moving ahead as though we are actually finished with cold. The past few days have been absolutely glorious. I have been unable to stay indoors. I spruced up the beds by adding compost, composted manure from dove bedding, and broken down pine straw to the beds to refresh them. The compost was a mixture of finished and partially finished materials. I just put the partially finished stuff under the others and wet it thoroughly. It will finish breaking down there, the earthworms and other break-down specialists will be drawn to the bedding and within a very short time, they will have everything broken down and mixed.

So, what’s happening now? The broccoli is still producing nicely, lots of side shoots totaling about three cups each week. I accidentally left some of it on the plants too long and the yellow flowers started to show, so I brought the stems in and put them in a vase. They make a nice bouquet. I am beginning to see some aphids on the lower stalks of some of the broccoli. I started spraying them with a strong stream of water, and I’ll wait to see how the predators handle the infestation.

​The veggies are doing great, and the peach trees are covered with blossoms. They survived the cold very well. The two small citrus are still iffy, but I’ll wait and see. I tried a few new squashes this year, an open-pollinated summer squash called ‘Saffron,’ and one called ‘Sibley.’ Sibley is an heirloom introduced in 1887. It is a banana squash with “thick sweet flesh,” and it’s supposed to be an excellent keeper. We’ll see how long it keeps in our coastal Louisiana climate - but maybe if I dehydrate it.

I love melons. One of my favorites is ‘Heart of Gold’; it is fragrant, juicy, and very sweet—everything you want in a cantaloupe. I’m also trying a couple of new ones this year: ‘Noir des Carmes’ is a true French cantaloupe with a “complex and deeply satisfying flavor.” I’m looking forward to that one. Te other is ‘Petit Gris de Rennes’ - supposed to be la crème de la crème of French cantaloupes. It was first documented almost 400 years ago. I also like ‘Hale’s Best Jumbo,’ another sweet, fragrant melon. This one has a small seed cavity. Last but not least, no melon garden is complete without watermelon. I’m trying ‘Sugar Baby’ and ‘Moon and Stars.’ It’s been around a long time, so I hope it lives up to its reputation.

I’ve started a succession of cucumbers, starting with ‘Parisian Pickling,’ another French heirloom used in the late 1800’s to make cornichons, those tiny, tart and delicious pickles that I love. I made some of them last year, and they came out great. I definitely want more. I also planted ‘Homemade Pickles’ and ‘Yard long Armenian.’ I will keep planting cukes every two weeks throughout the summer until about six weeks before the first frost. That way I keep using young vines and when they start to flag, I pull them up. Trellises and lots of space increase the air circulation, reducing the incident of disease and making them easier to pick them, too.

As for insect pests, I’ve seen aphids on a couple of plants, but not many. I have seen a couple of assassin bugs on the citrus though, so I expect the good guys will take care of the bad ones and keep everything in balance.

Over the past five days, I have weeded four 100-square-foot beds. Some of the weeds were as tall as I am – granted, I’m not that tall, but still it was a lot of work. When I planted some seedlings that I started early in the year, and then looked over those beds, you know, it was the most satisfying work I have done in months. I think I’ll keep doing it. 

​Until next time, Happy Gardening!