View source for Pansy

{{Short description|Large, hybrid garden flower}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2023}}
{{For|other uses of the name|Pansy (disambiguation)}}
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = PansyScan (cropped).jpg
| genus = Viola
| species = × wittrockiana
| authority = [[Helmut Gams|Gams]] ex Nauenb. & Buttler<ref name="Nauenb. & Buttler" />
| synonyms = *''Viola hortensis'' <small>hort. ex Steud.</small>
*''Viola hortensis'' <small>Wettst.</small>
*''Viola'' × ''hortensis grandiflora'' <small>Wittr.</small>
*''Viola maxima'' <small>hort. ex Domin</small>
*''Viola tricolor'' var. ''hortensis'' <small>Groenland & Rümpler</small>
*''Viola tricolor maxima'' <small>J.C.Clausen</small>
*''Viola tricolor maxima nigra'' <small>J.C.Clausen</small>
*''Viola wittrockiana'' <small>Gams</small>
| synonyms_ref = <ref name="Nauenb. & Buttler" />
}}

The '''garden pansy''' ('''''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana''''') is a type of polychromatic large-flowered [[hybrid plant]] cultivated as a garden [[flower]].<ref>{{GRIN | ''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana'' | 312231 | access-date = 29 October 2014}}</ref> It is derived by [[Hybrid (biology)|hybridization]] from several species in the [[Section (botany)|section]] ''Melanium'' ("the pansies")<ref name=Yock03>{{cite journal |last1=Yockteng Jr |first1=R. |last2=Ballard |first2=H.E. |last3=Mansion |first3=G. |last4=Dajoz |first4=I. |last5=Nadot |first5=S. |year=2003 |title=Relationships among pansies (''Viola'' section ''Melanium'') investigated using ITS and ISSR markers |journal=Plant Systematics and Evolution |volume=241 |issue=3–4 |pages=153–170 |doi=10.1007/s00606-003-0045-7 |bibcode=2003PSyEv.241..153Y |s2cid=25104565 |name-list-style=amp }}</ref> of the genus [[Viola (plant)|''Viola'']], particularly ''[[Viola tricolor|V.&nbsp;tricolor]]'', a [[wildflower]] of [[Europe]] and [[western Asia]] known as '''heartsease'''. It is sometimes known as ''V. tricolor'' var. ''hortensis'', but this scientific name is suspect. While ''V.&nbsp;tricolor'' var. ''hortensis'' <small>[[Johannes Groenland|Groenland]] & [[Karl Theodor Rümpler|Rümpler]]</small> is a synonym of ''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana'',<ref name="Nauenb. & Buttler">{{Cite journal|last1=Nauenburg|first1=Johannes Dietrich|last2=Buttler|first2=Karl Peter|year=2007|title=Validierung des Namens ''Viola wittrockiana''|url=https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/Kochia_2_0037-0041.pdf|journal=Kochia|volume=2|pages=37–41|doi=10.21248/kochia.v2.22 |s2cid=256124729 }}</ref> ''V.&nbsp;tricolor'' var. ''hortensis'' <small>[[DC.]]</small> refers to a horticultural variety of wild pansy (''V.&nbsp;tricolor'' without interspecific hybridization) that had been illustrated in ''[[Flora Danica]]'' in 1777<ref>{{Cite book|last=De Candolle|first=Augustin Pyramus|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/154259#page/310/mode/1up|title=Prodr. [A. P. de Candolle]|publisher=Treuttel et Würtz|year=1824|volume=1|location=Paris|pages=303}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Otto Friedrich Müller|first=Otto Friedrich|url=https://bibdigital.rjb.csic.es/viewer/13396/?offset=#page=101&viewer=picture&o=bookmark&n=0&q=|title=Flora Danica|publisher=Martin Hallager|year=1777|volume=4|location=Copenhagen|pages=623}}</ref> before the existence of ''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana''.<ref name="Nauenb. & Buttler" /><ref name="Clausen">{{Cite journal|last=Clausen|first=Jens Christian|date=1926|title=Genetical and cytological investigations on ''Viola tricolor'' L. and ''V.&nbsp;arvensis'' Murr.|journal=Hereditas|volume=8|issue=1–2|pages=1–156|doi=10.1111/j.1601-5223.1926.tb03159.x|issn=1601-5223|doi-access=free}}</ref>

The [[chromosome number]] of ''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana'' is 2n = 44–52,<ref name="Clausen" /> with most cultivars being 2n = 48.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Du|first1=Xiaohua|last2=Wang|first2=Mengye|last3=Słomka|first3=Aneta|last4=Liu|first4=Huichao|date=2018-09-01|title=Karyologic and heterosis studies of the artificial inter- and intraspecific hybrids of ''Viola'' ×''wittrockiana'' and ''Viola cornuta''|url=https://journals.ashs.org/hortsci/view/journals/hortsci/53/9/article-p1300.xml|journal= [[HortScience]] |language=en-US|volume=53|issue=9|pages=1300–1305|doi=10.21273/HORTSCI13098-18|issn=0018-5345|doi-access=free}}</ref> The flower is {{convert|2|to|3|in|cm|order=flip|0}} in diameter and has two slightly overlapping upper petals, two side petals, and a single bottom petal with a slight beard emanating from the flower's center. These petals are usually white or yellow, purplish, or blue.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Diderot|first1=Denis|title=Viola, pansy|url=https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=did;cc=did;rgn=main;view=text;idno=did2222.0002.251|journal= Encyclopedia of Diderot & d'Alembert - Collaborative Translation Project|access-date=1 April 2015|date=2013-04-15}}</ref> The plant may grow to {{convert|9|in|cm|order=flip|abbr=on}} in height, and prefers sun to varying degrees and well-draining soils.

== Terminology ==
[[File:Pansy Flower.jpg|thumb|Pansy flower]]
[[File:Purple and black viola cultivar in Toronto.jpg|thumb|Pansy displaying the two upper overlapping petals, the two side petals, and the single bottom petal]]

English common names, such as "pansy", "viola" and "violet" may be used interchangeably. One possible distinction is that plants considered to be "pansies" are classified in ''Viola'' sect. ''Melanium'', and have four petals pointing upwards (the two side petals point upwards), and only one pointing down, whereas those considered to be "violets" are classified in ''Viola'' sect. ''Viola'', and have two petals pointing up and three pointing down.<ref name=Yock03 /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kew.org/plants-fungi/Viola-cornuta.htm|title=Viola cornuta (horned pansy)|work=kew.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |first1=Elżbieta |last1=Kuta |first2=Jerzy |last2=Bohdanowicz |first3=Andrzej |last3=Małobęcki |first4=Aneta |last4=Słomka |date=2012 |title=Floral and pollen characters a useful tools in ''Viola'' taxonomy |journal=Acta Biologica Cracoviensia |volume=54 |issue=suppl. 1 |page=18 |url=http://www2.ib.uj.edu.pl/abc/pdf/suppl54_1/sup_54_s1.pdf |access-date=2014-10-29 |name-list-style=amp }}</ref> Another possible distinction is made by the American Violet Society – the [[International Cultivar Registration Authority]] for the genus ''Viola''. It divides cultivated varieties ([[cultivar]]s) in ''Viola'' sect. ''Melanium'' into four subgroups: B1 – pansies, B2 – violas, B3 – violettas and B4 – cornuta hybrids. On this classification, modern "pansies" differ from the other three subgroups by possessing a well-defined "blotch" or "eye" in the middle of the flower.<ref>{{cite web |title=Classification of the Cultivated forms of the genus Viola |url=http://americanvioletsociety.org/Registry/Cultivar_Registry_Classification.htm |work=Registry of the Cultivated Forms of the Genus Viola |publisher=The American Violet Society |access-date=2014-10-29 }}</ref>

Modern horticulturalists tend to use the term "pansy" for those multi-coloured large-flowered hybrids that are grown for bedding purposes every year, while "viola" is usually reserved for smaller, more delicate annuals and perennials.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}}

=== Etymology ===
The name "pansy" is derived from the [[French language|French]] word ''{{linktext|pensée}}'', "thought", and was imported into [[Late Middle English]] as a name of ''Viola'' in the mid-15th century, as the flower was regarded as a symbol of remembrance. The name "love in idleness" implied the image of a lover who has little or no other employment than to think of his beloved.<ref name=McGlashan1853 />

The name "heart's-ease" came from [[St.&nbsp;Euphrasia]], whose name in Greek signifies cheerfulness of mind. The woman, who refused marriage and took the veil, was considered a pattern of humility, hence the name "humble violet".<ref name=McGlashan1853>McGlashan, James. ''The Dublin University Magazine: A Literary and Political Journal''. Vol. 42. July to December 1853: 286.</ref>

In Scandinavia, Scotland, and Germany, the pansy is known as the "stepmother" flower; an [[aitiological]] tale about a selfish stepmother is told to children while the teller plucks off corresponding parts of the blossom.<ref name=Silverthorne2003>{{Cite book|last=Silverthorne|first=Elizabeth|year=2002|orig-year=1996|chapter=Violet/Pansy|title=Legends and Lore of Texas Wildflowers|publisher=Texas A&M University Press|pages=190–195|isbn=1-58544-230-5}}</ref> The German name is ''{{linktext|Stiefmütterchen}}'' ({{Literal translation|little stepmother}}); in the German version of the tale, the lower petal represents the stepmother, the large upper petals represent her daughters, and the small upper petals represent her stepdaughters.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Heartsease–Herb of the Month|url=https://herbsocietyblog.wordpress.com/2021/03/01/heartsease-herb-of-the-month/|last=Readal|first=Maryann|date=March 1, 2021|website=The Herb Society of America Blog|access-date=March 18, 2023}}</ref> The Czech name for the flower, ''maceška'', also means "little stepmother" and is said to derive from the flower's resemblance of an evil woman's sullen face. In Slovenian, the flower is instead identified with an orphan.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Vlková|first=Jana|title=Maceška, dáma s neobyčejnou pověstí|trans-title=Pansy, a lady with an extraordinary reputation|url=https://novyprostor.cz/clanky/525/maceska-dama-s-neobycejnou-povesti|magazine=Nový Prostor|language=Czech|issue=525|access-date=March 18, 2023}}</ref>

In Italy, the pansy is known as ''flammola'' (little flame).<ref name=Dix1829 />

In Israel, the pansy is called Amnon Ve'Tamar, (אמנון ותמר), named after the rape story of [[Amnon]] and [[Tamar (daughter of David)|Tamar]], in which Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar. The name was suggested by [[Shaul Tchernichovsky]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tchernichovsky |first=Shaul |title=אמנון ותמר (משירי הפרחים) |url=https://benyehuda.org/read/1223 |language=he}}</ref>

== Cultivation ==
=== Historical background ===
[[File:Pansy bi colour.jpg|thumb|A bicolor pansy]]

In the early 19th century, [[Lady Mary Elizabeth Bennet]] (1785–1861), daughter of [[Emma, Lady Tankerville]] and the [[Charles Bennet, 4th Earl of Tankerville|Earl of Tankerville]], collected and cultivated every sort of ''Viola tricolor'' (commonly, heartsease) she could procure in her father's garden at [[Walton-upon-Thames]], Surrey. Under the supervision of her gardener, William Richardson, a large variety of plants was produced via cross-breeding. In 1812, she introduced her pansies to the horticultural world, and, in 1813, Mr. Lee of Vineyard Nursery,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pansy - Encyclopedia of Cultivated Plants: From Acacia to Zinnia |url=https://ebrary.net/28039/environment/pansy |access-date=2024-05-26 |website=Ebrary}}</ref> a well-known florist and nurseryman, discovered her collection and further cultivated the flower. Other nurserymen followed Lee's example, and the pansy became a favorite among the public.

About the same time that Lady Bennett was busy cultivating heartsease, James, Lord Gambier was doing the same in his garden at Iver under the advice and guidance of his gardener William Thompson. A yellow viola, ''Viola lutea'', and a wide-petalled pale yellow species of Russian origin, ''Viola altaica'' were among the crosses that laid the foundation for the new hybrids classed as ''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana'', named for the Swedish botanist [[Veit Brecher Wittrock]] (1839–1914). A round flower of overlapping petals was the aim of some early experimenters; in the late 1830s a chance sport that no longer had narrow nectar guides of dark color on the petals but a broad dark blotch on the petals (which came to be called the "face"), was found. It was developed in Gambier's garden and released to the public in 1839 with the name "Medora".

By 1833, there were 400 named pansies available to gardeners who once considered its progenitor, heartsease, a weed. Specific guidelines were formulated for show pansies but amateur gardeners preferred the less demanding fancy pansies. About this time, James Grieve developed the viola and Dr. Charles Stuart developed the violetta, both smaller, more compact plants than the pansy.<ref>[[Sophia Orne Johnson|Johnson, Sophia Orne]]. ''Every woman her own flower gardener: A manual of flower gardening for ladies''. 7th ed. Pg 38–39. Ladies Floral Cabinet Co., 1885.</ref><ref>Farrar, Elizabeth. 2000. [http://www.americanvioletsociety.org/Species_N_Cultivars/Pansy.htm On the Subject of Pansies, Violas, and Violettas] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081225103343/http://www.americanvioletsociety.org/Species_N_Cultivars/Pansy.htm |date=25 December 2008 }}. The American Violet Society.</ref><ref>[http://windyacres.net/our-products/pansy/ Pansy]. Windy Acres, Inc.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=EFwjAQAAIAAJ&dq=lady+mary+bennett+pansies&pg=PA111 The Country gentleman's magazine]. Volume 7. 1871. Pg. 111–112</ref>

===Modern horticulture===
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2014}}
Modern horticulturists have developed a wide range of pansy flower colors and bicolors including yellow, gold, orange, purple, violet, red, white, and even near-black (very dark purple). Pansies typically display large showy face markings. The Joker Series has gained the [[Royal Horticultural Society]]'s [[Award of Garden Merit]].<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/agm-lists/agm-ornamentals.pdf | title = AGM Plants - Ornamental | date = November 2018 | publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date = 26 August 2019}}</ref>

[[File:CentreOrticoleDeRungis - Viola 3 by Line1.JPG|thumb|Pansies produced for the bedding market]]

Plants grow well in sunny or partially sunny positions in well-draining soils. Pansies are perennial, but normally grown as biennials or annuals because of their leggy growth. The first year plant produces [[Leaf|greenery]], and bears [[flower]]s and [[seed]]s in its second year of growth. Afterwards, the plant dies like an annual. Because of selective human breeding, most garden pansies bloom the first year, some in as little as nine weeks after sowing. [[File:Viola × wittrockiana BW 2016-07-25 17-18-26.jpg|thumb|After flowering, a seed capsule matures, eventually opening as seen here.]]

Pansies are purchased as six-packs or "flats" (US) of young plants from [[garden center]]s and planted directly into the garden soil. Plants will grow up to {{convert|9|in|cm|order=flip|abbr=on}} in height with flowers measuring {{convert|2|to|3|in|cm|order=flip|abbr=on|0}} in diameter, though smaller and larger flowering [[cultivar]]s are available.

[[File:Trays of pansies - geograph.org.uk - 1087436.jpg|thumb|Pansies for sale in a British [[garden centre]]]]

Pansies are winter hardy in [[USDA plant hardiness zone|zones 4–8]]. They can survive light freezes and short periods of snow cover, but, in areas with prolonged snow cover, a covering of a dry winter mulch is recommended. In warmer climates, [[USDA zone]]s 9–11, pansies can bloom over the winter, and are often planted in the fall. In warmer zones, pansies may re-seed themselves and return the next year. They are not very heat-tolerant; warm temperatures inhibit blooming and hot muggy air causes rot and death. In colder zones, pansies may not survive without snow cover or protection (mulch) from extreme cold or periods of freezing and thawing. They perform best in zones with moderate temperatures, and equal amounts of mild rainfall and sunshine.

Pansies, for best growth, are watered thoroughly about once a week, depending on climate and rainfall. The plant should never be over-watered. To maximize blooming, plant foods are used about every other week, depending on the type of food used. Regular [[Deadheading (flowers)|deadheading]] can extend the blooming period.

== Pests and diseases ==
[[File:Acyrthosiphon pisum (pea aphid)-PLoS.jpg|thumb|Aphid and her young]]

=== Aphids ===
[[Aphid]]s, which can spread the cucumber mosaic virus, sometimes feed on pansies.

=== Leaf spot ===
Leaf spot (''Ramularia deflectens'') is a [[fungal infection]]. Symptoms include dark spots on leaf margins followed by a white web covering the leaves. It is associated with cool damp springs.

=== Downy mildew ===
Pansy downy mildew is caused by the [[oomycete]] ''[[Peronospora]] violae'', which produces purple-brown leaf spots, often with encircling yellowing, that have an accompanying grey mold on the leaf underside. It can severely weaken or kill affected plants.<ref>{{cite book |title=Pests, Diseases & Disorders of Garden Plants |first1=Stefan |last1=Buczacki |first2=Keith |last2=Harris |publisher=HarperCollins |year=1998 |edition=2 |pages=412–3 |isbn=978-0-00-220063-9}}</ref>

=== Powdery mildew ===
A disease caused by one or more species of fungus in the [[Erysiphaceae]] family.<ref>{{cite book| title=Pests, Diseases & Disorders of Garden Plants| first1=Stefan| last1=Buczacki| first2=Keith| last2=Harris| publisher=HarperCollins| year=1998| edition=2| pages=414, 422| isbn=978-0-00-220063-9}}</ref> Symptoms include violet-gray powder on fringes and underside of leaves. It is encouraged by stagnant air and can be limited but not necessarily eliminated by fungicide application.

[[File:Pansy Viola x wittrockiana Red Cultivar Flower 2000px.jpg|thumb|A pansy exhibiting the flower's morphology: two large petals overlapping at the top, two side petals, a lower petal with slight indentation, and beards at the center]]

=== Slugs and snails ===
[[Slug]]s and [[snail]]s feed on the foliage.

=== Stem rot ===
Stem rot, also known as pansy sickness, is a soil-borne [[fungus]] and a possible hazard with unsterilized animal [[manure]]. The plant may collapse without warning in the middle of the season. The foliage will flag and lose color. Flowers will fade and shrivel prematurely. Stem will snap at the soil line if tugged slightly. The plant is probably a total loss unless tufted. The treatment of stem rot includes the use of [[fungicide]]s such as [[Cheshunt]] or [[Benomyl]], which are used prior to planting. Infected plants are destroyed (burned) to prevent the spread of the pathogen to other plants.

=== Cucumber mosaic virus ===
The [[cucumber mosaic virus]] is transmitted by [[aphid]]s. Pansies with the virus have fine yellow veining on young leaves, stunted growth and anomalous flowers. The virus can lie dormant, affect the entire plant and be passed to next generations and to other species. Prevention is key: purchases should consist entirely of healthy plants.

== In culture ==

=== Symbolism ===
[[File:Embroidered bookbinding Elizabeth I.jpg|thumb|[[Bookbinding]] embroidered by [[Elizabeth I]] in 1544 for her stepmother [[Katherine Parr]] with heartsease depicted in each corner]]

The pansy's connection to pious humility is mentioned by Harte, who writes: "From brute beasts humility I learned;/And in the pansy’s life God’s providence discerned".<ref name=Dix1829 />
Gifford evokes both Christian and classical undertones, writing how "Pansies – still,/More blest than me, thus shall ye live/Your little day, – and when ye die,/Sweet flowers! The grateful muse/Shall give a verse".<ref name=Dix1829 />
Smart proposes "Were it not for thee, oh sun,/Those pansies, that reclining from the bank/View through the immaculate, pellucid stream,/Their portraiture in the inverted Heaven,/Might as well change their triple boast, the white,/The purple, and the gold".<ref name=Dix1829 />

On account of its popularity in both society and its recurring appearances in Romantic poetry, a variety of new nicknames for the flower began to circulate. Dorothea Lynde Dix proclaims that “Perhaps no flower (not excepting even the queenly rose) claims to be so universal a favorite, as the viola tricolor; none currently has been honored with so rich a variety of names, at once expressive of grace, delicacy and tenderness.”<ref name=Dix1829>Dix, Dorothea Lynde. ''The garland of flora''. S. G. Goodrich and co. and Carter and Hendee, 1829.</ref> Many of these names play on the whimsical nature of love, including “Three Faces under a Hood,” “Flame Flower,” “Jump Up and Kiss Me,” “Flower of Jove,” and “Pink of my John.”<ref name=Phillips1824>Phillips, Henry. ''Flora Historica: or the Three Seasons of The British Parterre''. Vol. 1. London: E. Lloyd and Son, 1824.</ref>

In ''[[Hamlet]]'', [[Ophelia (character)|Ophelia]] distributes flowers with the remark, "There's pansies, that's for thoughts" (IV.5). Other poets referencing the pansy include [[Ben Jonson]], [[Bernard Barton]], [[Michael Drayton]], [[Edmund Spenser]], [[William Wakefield]], and [[William Wordsworth]].

[[File:Grandvillle Fleurs Stiefmuetterchen.jpg|thumb|"Pensée" from ''Fleurs Animées'' by [[J.&nbsp;J. Grandville]] (1803–1847)]]

[[Nathaniel Hawthorne]] published his last literary effort, an unfinished piece, entitled ''Pansie, a Fragment'', sometimes called ''Little Pansie, a fragment'' in 1864.
[[D. H. Lawrence]]'s ''Pansies: Poems by D. H. Lawrence'' was published in 1929, and [[Margaret Mitchell]] originally chose Pansy as the name of her ''[[Gone with the Wind (novel)|Gone with the Wind]]'' heroine, but settled on Scarlett just before the book went into print.

The word "pansy" has indicated an [[effeminate]] male since [[Elizabethan]] times and its usage as a disparaging term for a man or boy who is effeminate, as well as for an avowedly [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] man, is still in use.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of PANSY |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pansy#:~:text=2-,a,term%20of%20abuse%20and%20disparagement |access-date=2024-08-28 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref> The word "ponce" (which has now come to mean a [[pimp]]) and the adjective "poncey" (effeminate) also derive from "pansy".

=== Visual arts ===
In the visual arts, [[Pierre-Joseph Redouté]] painted ''Bouquet of Pansies'' in 1827, and, in 1874, [[Henri Fantin-Latour]] painted ''Still Life with Pansies''. In 1887, [[Vincent van Gogh]] painted ''Mand met viooltjes'', and, in 1926, [[Georgia O'Keeffe]] created a painting of a black pansy called simply, ''Pansy'' and followed it with ''White Pansy'' in 1927. [[J. J. Grandville]] created a fantasy flower called Pensée in his ''Fleurs Animées''.

=== As an emblem ===
[[File:Vincent van Gogh - Mand met viooltjes - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|''Mand met viooltjes'' (Vincent van Gogh, 1887)]]

Because its name means "thought", the pansy was chosen as a symbol of [[Freethought]]<ref>{{cite journal| url=http://ffrf.org/fttoday/1997/june_july97/gaylor.html| journal=Freethought Today|date=June–July 1997| title= Rediscovering A Forgotten Symbol Of Freethought – A Pansy For Your Thoughts| first=Annie Laurie| last=Gaylor|author-link=Annie Laurie Gaylor| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050411105644/http://ffrf.org/fttoday/1997/june_july97/gaylor.html|archive-date=2005-04-11}}</ref> and has been used in the literature of the [[American Secular Union]]. [[Humanists]] use it too, as the pansy's current appearance was developed from the heartsease by two centuries of intentional [[crossbreed]]ing of wild plant [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrids]].
The specific colors of the flower – purple, yellow, and white – are meant to symbolize memories, loving thoughts and souvenirs, respectively.<ref name=Silverthorne2003 />
The [[Freedom From Religion Foundation]] (FFRF) uses the pansy symbol extensively in its lapel pins and literature. The flower has long been associated with human manner, as one man cleverly stated: “Nature sports as much with the colours of this little flower as she does with the features of the human countenance.”<ref name=Phillips1824 />

=== Traditions and uses ===
[[File:Best Wishes Pansies.JPG|thumb|upright|Greeting card, {{circa|1900}}]]

In [[William Shakespeare]]'s ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'', the "juice of the heartsease" is a love potion and "on sleeping eyelids laid, will make a man or woman madly dote upon the next live creature that it sees." (II.1).

In the [[language of flowers]], a honeyflower and a pansy left by a lover for his beloved means, "I am thinking of our forbidden love". In 1858, the writer James Shirley Hibberd wrote that the French custom of giving a bride a bouquet of pansies (thoughts) and marigolds (cares) symbolized the woes of domestic life rather than marital bliss.<ref>Hibberd, James Shirley. ''The fuchsia, pansy and phlox: their history, properties, cultivation, propaganda, and general management in all seasons''. Groombridge and Sons, 1858.</ref>

A German fable tells of how the pansy lost its perfume. Originally pansies would have been very fragrant, growing wild in fields and forests.<ref name=Silverthorne2003 /> It was said that people would trample the grass completely in eagerness to pick pansies. Unfortunately, the people’s cows were starving due to the ruined fields, so the pansy prayed to give up her perfume. Her prayer was answered, and without her perfumed scent, the fields grew tall, and the cows grew fat on the fresh green grass.<ref name=Silverthorne2003 />

American pioneers thought that “a handful of violets taken into the farmhouse in the spring ensured prosperity, and to neglect this ceremony brought harm to baby chicks and ducklings.”<ref name=Silverthorne2003 /> On account of its place in American hearts, a game called “Violet War” also arose. In this game, two players would intertwine the hooks where the pansy blossoms meet the stems, then attempt to pull the two flowers apart like wishbones. Whoever pulled off the most of their opponent’s violet heads was proclaimed the winner.<ref name=Silverthorne2003 /> Young American settlers also made pansy dolls by lining up the pansy flower “faces”, pasting on leaf skirts and twig arms to complete the figures.<ref name=Silverthorne2003 />

The pansy is also used in [[herbalism]] and [[traditional medicine]].<ref>Lewis, W. H., Elvin-Lewis, M. P. F. (2003). ''Medical Botany. Plants Affecting Human Health'' (p.555). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.</ref>

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
File:Angiosperms in iran گلها و گیاهان گلدار ایرانی 47.jpg|Pansies showing typical face-like markings
File:Unknown flower-9.jpg|Pansies in a garden displaying foliage, markings, and buds
File:Viola wittrockiana Delta Pure Yellow.jpg|Yellow pansies
File:Pansy-1.jpg|Hybrid pansy
File:Pansy-2.jpg|Hybrid pansy
File:Pink Viola cultivar, with deepr tone at petal centres.jpg|Hybrid pansy
File:Pansy-5.jpg|Hybrid pansy
File:Pansy-6.jpg|Hybrid pansy
File:Laitche-P003.jpg
File:Pensée.JPG
File:Angiosperms in iran گلها و گیاهان گلدار ایرانی 36.jpg
File:Colourful Viola flower 3.jpg
File:Pansy “Frizzle Sizzle Yellow Blue Swirl,” Phipps Conservatory, 2015-03-25, 01.jpg
File:Flower in Ramnicu Valcea zoo.jpg
File:Domašno cvekje Rogačevo (96).JPG
File:Triclor Viola cultivar in Texas A&M University Horticultural Garden.jpg
File:Blue and yellow flowers.jpg
File:Multi-color Viola cultuivar, with fringed white petals, and yellow centre.jpg
</gallery>

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}
* Remember Flower By Faces, But Not Humans. "The Milwaukee Sentinel." September 15, 1929. P. 12.

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote|Pansies}}
{{Commons|Viola × wittrockiana}}

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[[Category:Garden plants]]
[[Category:Viola (plant)]]
[[Category:Hybrid plants]]