About Impatiens

Basics

• The common impatiens (Impatiens wallerana) is a perennial from East Africa. However in most of the United States, it is grown as an annual. It will bloom continuously during the summer as long as it is supplied with water and fertilized regularly. The most common colors are whites, pinks and reds. Coral shades such as orange and salmon are also available. The closest impatiens get to blue is a light periwinkle.

Variations

• New Guinea impatiens (Impatiens hawkeri) have larger flowers and darker leaves. They are a bold variant on the traditional impatiens with flowers that come in dark coral colors in contrast with the usual pastels. Rose impatiens or double impatiens have a second whorl of petals that providse for a sophisticated refinement of the standard impatiens. Another variety that is not as commonly grown nowadays is rose balsam (Impatiens balsamina) or touch-me-not.

Conditions

• Impatiens prefer filtered shade. The ideal location is one that provides two to three hours of sun in the morning and is shaded in the afternoon. Impatiens that receive more sun than this may be stunted and will require more water. However, if the shade is too deep, you may get bushy plants with few blooms. Make sure to water regularly. Potted plants may need to be watered daily in hot weather.

Prevention/Solution

• Impatiens have a tendency to get leggy towards the end of summer. You can minimize this effect by pinching back the stems to encourage branching. There are several fungal diseases which can affect impatiens. Verticulum wilt causes leaves to become pale green followed by sudden death of the plant. It is not effective to treat this disease, but by rotating the planting locations, you can reduce the amount of pathogen in the soil. Other fungal diseases such as rhizoctonia crown rot and leaf spot can be controlled by removing affected leaves, avoiding overcrowding of plants and watering in the morning instead of the evening.

Fun Fact

• There is a fun garden trick that you can play with impatiens seedpods. Look closely at an impatiens plant after it has been blooming for several weeks and you may be able to find seedpods located slightly underneath the blooming flowers. The seeds are in fat pods about the size of a pinkie nail. By the time the seeds inside are ready, this pod is under amazing pressure. At the faintest touch, it will burst open (impatiently), sending seeds everywhere. You can save these seeds to grow in next year's garden.