Viola kauaensis var. wahiawaensis, a member of the violet family (Violaceae), is a perennial herb with upward curving or weakly rising, hairless, lateral stems about 10 to 50 cm (4 to 20 in) long. The kidney- to heart-shaped leaves are usually 2.0 to 5.0 cm (0.8 to 2.0 in) long and 3.5 to 6.0 cm (1.4 to 2.4 in) wide and widely spaced. The toothed leaf blades are unlobed or rarely three-lobed, hairless or covered with a few minute hairs, with a broadly wedge-shaped base. The solitary flowers are borne in the leaf axils. Two types of flowers are present. One is self-pollinating and does not open, while the other opens and requires cross-pollination. The flowers that open have hairless petals, which are white on the upper surface and purple or blue to white on the lower surface. These petals are narrowly spatula-shaped, the upper petals measuring about 15.0 to 19.0 mm (0.6 to 0.7 in) long, the lateral ones about 18.0 to 23.0 mm (0.7 to 0.9 in) long, and the lower ones about 18.0 to 23.0 mm (0.7 to 1.0 in) long. The non-opening flowers usually occur on short lateral stems. Their greenish petals are hairless, the upper ones being three-lobed and about 1.0 to 1.6 mm (0.04 to 0.06 in) long. The fruit is a deeply lobed capsule 8.0 to 13.0 mm (0.3 to 0.5 in) long.