The wild pansy, also known as heartsease or love-in-idleness, is one of the ancestors of the garden pansy (Viola x wittrockiana) which was cultivated during from countless crosses and selections. The wild plant can be discovered all over Europe as a ground covering herb on rather acidic soils such as empty lots or arable land. As its Latin name tricolor already suggests, the flowers are multi-colored violet, yellow and white. The above-ground plant parts, its leaves and flowers, can be eaten and used as a remedy. Especially the edible flowers with their light camphor aroma are an excellent addition to salads. Due to the high proportion of mucilage contained, the leaves are well suited for the thickening of soups. Dried leaves and flowers are tasty and decorative in herbal tea blends. In addition to the already mentioned mucilage substances, which can be used for external and internal application against skin diseases and eczema, above all the high concentration of rutins is what makes the plant medically effective. In the dried herb with flowers, up to 25% of these antioxidative ingredients can be found. The wild pansy is also described as a love plant, at least when it comes to Shakespare. In his comedy "A Midsummer Night's Dream" Oberon and Puck make a love potion from the juice of the plant. If not love potions, at least dyestuffs can be reliable obtained from the flowers.
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