I've had a few huge clumps of viola odorata "Charlotte" for about 6 years. They get more prolific each year, reseed faithfully for new plants, and give me heavily scented blooms all year up to frost. This spring I got a little overzealous with my garden clean-up (being newly retired and having more time for gardening.)

This spring I sheared off all the dead foliage cover from the previous year before the violets broke dormancy. BIG MISTAKE! Leave the dead stuff on the plant! They went into shock, took forever to grow leaves, and didn't send up a single flower. The plants are recovering nicely, and I expect to see flowers again.

I read in another post about soaking violets in water to release the scent, and I'm grateful for that info. Thanks to whomever wrote that. I've seen violet water in the stores and now I can make my own (as soon as those plants bloom again.)