Photo and text by Don Paulson

Flett's Violet (Viola flettii)

This Olympic Endemic, with its striking purplish green, kidney shaped leaves, grows at high elevations invariably in rock crevices - the same areas you would likely find another endemic, piper’s bellflower. A member of the Violaceae family, Flettii (pronounced Flet-ee-eye) is named after botanist J. B. Flett. One must scramble high into the basalt outcrops of the Olympic high country to find this pretty jewel. Look for it in June to July, as soon as the snow has melted away. You can marvel at the fact that the violet you have found grows no where else in the world.

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