Get Growing—Viola: Herb of the Year!

By Brad and Susan Emery

Did you know violets are herbs? I had no idea that violets are herbs and that they are valued for their medicinal properties. It was the Greek physician Dioscorides who noted violets have a ‘cooling’ effect on inflammation of the stomach and of the eyes. The 16th century English physician, John Gerard, described more than a dozen medicines made from the leaves or flowers. These were used for hot fevers and inflammation.