Viola hybrida 'Sorbet F1 Lavender Pink'

Some unbelievably coloured violas have come on the market in recent years with little notice. Most gardeners pass up these rugged, cool-season performers in favour of their larger cousins, the pansies.
But don't be in too much of a hurry to overlook these exquisitely coloured violas. The ‘Sorbet Hybrids’ are a unique hybrid that combine all the charm of violas with the explosive colours of pansies. The series of have some of the most amazing colour selections you'll ever see.

Early-blooming Sorbet has been bred to have more blooms on each plant and to have less stretching, Sorbet remains compact in both heat and cold, making it a standout performer in spring and autumn.
Hardy to minus 23°C (-10°F), the free-flowering plants perform across a wide range of climatic conditions and have excellent overwintering. In climates with mild weather, Viola Sorbet will flower all winter.

Viola 'Sorbet F1 Lavender Pink' wears a soft, dreamy coat. The petals blush a delicate lavender kissed with rosy pink undertones. The top petals lean more lavender, the lower ones more pink, giving it a subtle watercolor fade.
Refined, elegant and easy on the eye, they flower abundantly and are ideally suited for spring and autumn use in garden beds, pot and patio containers and baskets and are an exciting addition to an otherwise bleak winter landscape.

Sowing:
Violas are perennial plants but are often treated as annuals or biennials. 60 days from seed. They can be sown practically all year if at temperatures of around 15 to 20°C (60 to 68°F) can be provided.
They can be sown in December to February for May blooms. Sow before July for flowering in autumn, or sow September to December for larger spring blooms.

Use a good quality seed starting mix (John Innes or similar) or make a mixture of compost, a little vermiculite and a little sand to give drainage. Sieve the compost into pots or cell packs and press it down lightly. Add a little more compost if necessary. Make a small indentation with your finger and pop one seed into each indentation.
Light is not required for germination. A medium covering of coarse grade vermiculite is recommended to help maintain high humidity around the germinating seed, if you do not have vermiculite, cover lightly with sieved soil.
Place the containers in a cold greenhouse or outside in a cold frame, ideally at temperatures of around 15 to 20°C (60 to 68°F) Avoid temperatures above 21°C (70°F) to prevent seedling stretch. Maintain the soil at fairly wet moisture levels, i.e., the media is glistening, but water will not ooze out from the bottom of the tray and will penetrate only slightly from the top around the fingertip.

Transplanting:
Optimal outside growing temperatures are 60 to 70°F (15 to 21°C) days, and nights in the low 50s°F (11 to 15°C) for the first few weeks. Violas can also tolerate lower night temperatures – in the 40s°F (5 to 9°C). Fertilise with a balanced fertiliser in the growing media mix to encourage good foliar growth before flowering.
Violas will thrive in any good soil and, although they will do well in part shade, they appreciate plenty of sunshine. Viola flowers follow the sun, or, on dull days, they follow the best light. Plant them where you look at them with the sun or light behind you - then their flowers will face you.
Plant plain-faced types en masse in beds and borders, and bicolours and whiskered types along paths and in containers where you can appreciate the delicacy of their pretty patterns.

Cultivation:
One thing that helps violas give their very best is regular dead-heading. So as soon as the flowers fade, nip them off. Use kitchen scissors or thumb and forefinger. During the growing season, fertilise the plants monthly with a balanced fertiliser. Water the plants well and allow to dry slightly before watering again.

Plant Uses:
Violas combine well with spring bulbs and foliage plants in containers. They make excellent ground cover planted under shrubs and trees and the edible varieties can also be grown with mixed salad leaves. A few of the longer stemmed varieties in a small vase will last over a week and look magical.

Edible Flowers:
The entire blossom of violas can be eaten, including the petiole. (The leaves and roots aren’t considered fit for human consumption.). This is a huge advantage as you can use whole blooms in salads or as lavish garnishes on cupcakes or cream-based spring pies, without resorting to painstakingly plucking petals.
The blossoms frozen in ice cubes are always beautiful. The flowers make a beautiful addition to any spring meal, even if only as a decoration. If you are planning to use your pansies in the kitchen, be sure not to use pesticides or other chemicals.

Origin:
Viola Sorbet F1 series is a hybrid, bred from Viola cornuta, the horned violet. The 'F1' tag means it's a first-generation hybrid, crafted for uniform blooms, compact growth, and resilience in both heat and cold. Its precise parentage is closely guarded, but it's rooted in V. cornuta genetics.
Viola cornuta, a true perennial from the Pyrenees, returns year after year. The same goes for Viola labradorica from Greenland, along with Viola odorata and Viola riviniana, both closely related to the wild violets that grace our woodlands.

Nomenclature:
The genus, from Latin, viola means violet, both the flower and the colour. It likely has older Indo-European roots, linked to words for flowers and fragrance. Romans used the word viola for the sweet-smelling wild violet (Viola odorata), prized in gardens and poetry alike.
Viola is the Latin form of the Greek name Ione. There is a legend that when Jupiter changed his beloved Io into a white heifer for fear of Juno's jealousy, he caused these modest flowers to spring forth from the earth to be fitting food for her, and he gave them her name.
The species name, cornuta is from Latin cornutus, meaning 'horned' which refers to the flower’s slightly spurred, horn-like petals, a hallmark of Viola cornuta. So, the common name of 'Horned Violet' is descriptive, a poetic nod to its shape and lineage.