Very rare.

This is the white flowered version of the Teesdale Violet ( Viola rupestris).

Teesdale violet grows in just four places in the U.K. In two of them, Ingleborough in North Yorkshire and Widdybank Fell in Teesdale there are substantial populations. They all have blue flowers as do those in the third, somewhat smaller group near Brough in Cumbria..

The fourth site, near Arnside, has a tiny colony and exclusively has flowers which are white. So it is the only white flowered location in the U.K.

These precious plants are cared for by local botanists with the help of the National Trust.

Last Summer they managed to collect some seeds and these are now in the Kew Seed Bank for long term conservation. Collecting the dust like seeds was quite a challenge because when the seed heads are ripe they explode and scatter the tiny seeds around. So tiny bags were clipped on to the seed-heads before the explosions.

It is good to see the devotion with which these rare plants are cared for.