Home

Impatiens

White and orange impatiens

Credit: Angela Altomare
PrintPrintEmailEmail
Leave a comment
Your rating: None Average: 3.5 of 5 (45 votes)

Botanical name: Impatiens

Plant type: Flower

USDA Hardiness Zones: 10, 11

Sun exposure: Part Sun

Soil type: Loamy

Soil pH: Neutral


Flower color: Red, Pink, Orange, Yellow, Purple, White

Bloom time: Summer, Fall

Impatiens is a beautiful annual that makes an excellent houseplant or summer bedding plant. It is also known as "Busy Lizzie" and its name is a Latin word that describes the way its seeds shoot out of its pods when ripe (the slightest touch can make a ripe impatiens seed pod burst open and scatter its seeds). Impatiens like shade and moisture.

Planting

  • Plant impatiens transplants after the last spring frost in humus-rich, moist, well-drained soil. Make sure the plants have some shelter from the wind.
  • The closer impatiens plants are, the taller they will grow, so space accordingly (impatiens plants can grown anywhere between 6 and 30 inches tall). For flower beds, plant 8 to 12 inches apart so the plants will stay low to the ground.
  • You can mix in compost or a slow-release fertilizer before transplanting to help the plants.
  • If you have impatiens plants in containers, use a sterile or soil-less growing mixture to ensure better drainage for the plants.

Care

  • The most important thing to remember about impatiens plants is to water them regularly. Keep them moist, but not too wet. If the plants dry out, they will lose their leaves. If you over-water the plants, this could encourage fungal diseases.
  • Remember container plants will need more water.

Pests

Recommended Varieties

  • Tom Thumb Series (Impatiens balsamina), which is a dwarf variety with large, double, brightly colored flowers.
  • Super Elfin Series (Impatiens walleriana), which is a spreading plant with a wide variety of pastel colors.
  • Swirl Series (Impatiens walleriana), which have pretty pink and orange flowers whose petals are outlined in r

E-Cards

Click here to send a free e-card of this pretty impatiens flower.

Click here to see other images of impatiens flowers.

Comments

I recently planted impatiens

By EmilySchmimilie on June 12

I recently planted impatiens in my front yard, approximately 1.5 weeks ago. They are in a flower bed on the north side of the house 6-8' from the house itself. The lady at the nursery said they should have enough shade since they are on the north side. We also have a medium sized maple tree in the front yard. I have been monitoring the flowers closely and the blooms look sad and droopy. They are getting full sun exposure from around 10am - 6pm. I'm debating if they are still trying to take root or if they are simply overheating in the sun - or could it be a lack of water. I've been watering every-other day in the evenings. Do I need to pull up these flower and put them in a pot on the front porch or should I wait it out a while longer? I should note that I also have merigolds in the same flower bed and they seem to be doing fine - they were planted at the same time as the impatiens.
Thanks!

They are getting way too much

By Laura J on June 17

They are getting way too much sun and won't last. I plant impatiens every year and they like a "little" bit of sun (2-3 hours)over full shade, but they cannot handle full sun. They are shade plants. You should replant.

The impatiens should be OK on

By Almanac Staff on June 14

The impatiens should be OK on the north side of your house. Wait before transplanting. Water only when needed. Check the soil, if it is moist don't water.

I have impatiens on my front

By Ginny Kauffman on June 3

I have impatiens on my front porch in a pot. They don't grow nice & look very scraggly. There are always spider webs on them. Could the spiders be killing them? I have found small tan spiders on them. I just don't know what to do for them anymore!! Help!!!

You have spider mites on your

By Almanac Staff on June 4

You have spider mites on your impatiens plants. According to your cooperative extension, "This often happens when the plants are given a protection free of the rains that tend to wash the mites away. The pests are pencil-point size, piercing, sucking arachnids that cause the bleak look as they suck the juices from leaves and stems. Start control by using a strong stream of water to wash the mites away. Then apply an insecticidal soap spray. Follow the label instructions, and repeat applications every 5 to 7 days for a few weeks to prevent reinfestation. If the plants have been severely infected they may not recover."

Impatiens in Scotland

By Anonymous

I saw today (25th April 2013) Impatiens Plants in Tesco, looking very healthy and at a reasonable price! However, in my experience we are wasting our time here in Tayside in the East of Scotland any time before 1st June at the VERY earliest as we can get late frosts hre, right in the heart of Raspberry growing country, even into early June. Have Tesco no idea when to market plants in each part of the country? It seems to me that they market their plants in accordance with conditions in Kent or some such mild and warm place down in the South of England. Who is the fool? It's not me 'cos I certainly won't buy them at this stage of the Season and it is certainly not them either as there are more fools out there who will buy them and thus make more profits for Tesco at their own personal cost.
A totally disgusted Gardener in the Heartland of Scotland!

Are you having trouble

By Almanac Staff

Are you having trouble finding impatiens in garden centers this spring (2013)? Did the ones you planted last year struggle to grow or develop mildew? Read why here:
http://www.almanac.com/blog/annuals/impatient-impatiens

I wasn't impatiens

By Anonymous

Last spring, I was given a small plant-gift in a plain dark plastic pot -about 4 inches square. I kept it on a filing tray at my desk at work and kept it watered. It bloomed more than 5 pretty blossoms, then just seemed to give up. Over the months, each green leaf fell, until I ended up with a "Charlie Brown" impatiens. I had about 4 stems with 2 to 3 leaves each - right at the tip. A co-worker gave me a slightly bigger pot, and some soil with Miracle Gro in it. I waited over a month, then one day decided to replant using the extra soil. I didn't remove the soil around the roots, but simply added the new to the bottom and around the edges, then some extra on top. That was just before Thanksgiving! I no longer have an impatiens plant - I have an im"bush"iens. And we're just past Valentine's Day! It just dropped 3 more blossoms, and there's another bud growing. I'm not a Master Gardener, and can't even claim to be a regular gardener, but this impatiens is the best plant ever! I intend to keep it going, too!

Impatiens in Florida

By Anonymous

My inpatiens were all doing great. On one side of the yard they are beautiful. On the other, not too good. It looks as though they are being eaten away. Can I put a systemic on them, or will it harm them?

Earwigs and Japanese beetles

By Almanac Staff

Earwigs and Japanese beetles can cause damage to impatiens. Try an insecticidal soap spray. Reapply after a rain. Good luck!

I have had an impatiens plant

By Anonymous

I have had an impatiens plant in an indoor pot in my room for 10 years now. It has recently started to droop and die, I noticed that the base of the stems seem to thin out and turn yellow. I have also noticed insects that look like fruit flies in the soil. I have tried insect killer and it hasn't worked. Please give me advice! I love this plant haha

impatiens plant

By Anonymous

TRANSPLANT IT OUTSIDE THEY LOVE IT OR THEIR LIFE SPAN IS SHORT IT IS GREAT YOU HAD IT OR THEM THIS LONG. i WOULD TIP THE TOPS PLANT OUTSIDE AFTER DEAD HEADING AND PUTTING IN FRESH DIRT AND SPRAY WITH NEEM OIL

patience with impatiens

By Almanac Staff

Ten years?! That's remarkable. It's really difficult to know what you might be dealing with, but of course it doesn't sound good. Here are a few things you can try:
• Reduce the humidity and maintain good air circulation.
• Repot the plant in pasteurized pathogen-free media.
• Do not take cuttings of the plant for propagation.
Alternatively, you could take the plant to a local nursery for an opinion. Seeing the problem may help to solve it more quickly.
Good luck!

Seeds

By Anonymous

Impatiens grow readily from seeds. By planting seeds you get much more bang for your buck and have a wider variety of plants.

I have never been able to

By Anonymous

I have never been able to keep any plant alive. But my daughter gave me impatients for mothers day and I have some how kept it alive in a pot in my house over the summer. But now that it is cold outside and the heat is on it has stopped blooming and is losing all its leaves. What can I do to get it to come back to life? Would cutting back the stems help it? I have a always had a black thumb, and have been so happy to keep it alive for so long. Can anyone help me? I would appreciate it so much! Thanx

impatiens troubles

By Almanac Staff

Make sure that your plant is getting bright, indirect light, from a southern window or grow lights. Make sure that the soil is consistently moist, but not waterlogged. Do not fertilize over winter. Keep the plant in temperatures around 70 to 75 degrees F; do not let night temperatures dip lower than 55 F. Also check for diseases or pests such as spider mites, mealybugs, thrips, or whiteflies, which can suck plant sap and may eventually cause leaves to fall. If all else fails, take a cutting, root it in water, and plant it in a pot when the roots are established. Hope this helps!

Impatiens

By Anonymous

I received two beautiful pots of pink impatiens for Mother's Day and am amazed that they still continue to put out blooms and the leaves are great. They do wilt from wind or lack of water, but boy do they ever spring back with some attention. I've never had impatiens before. Didn't know they bloomed this long. I also didn't know they were annuals. I just finished putting them in the ground. Thought I'd get a head start on the frost. I guess I've got to dig them back out again now.

Impatiens are very sensitive

By Almanac Staff

Impatiens are very sensitive to cold weather so you need to bring the plants indoors before you have that first frost. Put them in a sunny location. You can also take cuttings from your plants and root them in water on a windowsill.

loss

By Anonymous

I too am losing my impatiens. Usually September is when my gardens shine, the extreme heat effects are gone and everyone is gorgeous, but my Impatiens are losing leaves like crazy and I'm wondering if I pinch back the naked stems will anything return? The plants are in containers and in the ground! What is going on?

Impatiens like warm weather.

By Almanac Staff

Impatiens like warm weather. They start loosing leaves when it gets colder. You can pinch back the stems and maybe you'll have some new growth before it gets even colder.

impatiens and downy mildew

By Anonymous

Downy mildew a huge problem again this year. The UK USA and various Canadian cities impacted by this fungal disease. One day you have lush full looking beds of impatiens the next day you see them collapsing to the ground resembling a dead spider. When they get to this stage remove infected plants asap. Place them in garbage bags and put them out for garbage pickup. Do not put into compost pile due to fungal spores.These same spores can survive and overwinter in floral beds. Do not plant impatiens in same beds the following year as they are suceptible to this fungal disease. Rotate your crop ... try coleus or new guinea impatiens which are hardy against downy mildew. I hope this helps. From an avid gardener in Toronto Canada.

saddened by my dead impatiens

By Anonymous

I thought I was the only one saddened by the sudden death of impatiens. I plant impatiens every year and this year my rainbow of color turned to stems...it has been an ungodly hot summer here in Michigan, so I increased my daily watering via sprinkler hoses on timers...perhaps that was a mistake...

impatients

By Anonymous

Shall I keep for next season? Will the plants come back?

You can overwinter impatiens

By Almanac Staff

You can overwinter impatiens inside in a place with lots of light and warmth; they are damaged by the lightest frost. If they start to shed leaves, cut them back so that they can resprout foliage.
Otherwise, impatients are an annual. So if you can't keep them going, you'll need to get more plants for next year.

impatiens in the winter

By Anonymous

If your impatiens get to long and "leggy", you can also take cuttings and root them in water to start new plants. For plants I grow outside, I will cut back before the first frost and leave the cuttings in water in a sunny window til spring and then plant them outside.

leggie impatients

By Anonymous

last year we planted other flowering plants in our plot area- around the impatient whites- these were the euphoria and pointsettia- the impatient has since fought its way above and beyond the growth of these other plants, and is still blooming- but it has become very leggy, we wish to trim it back and clear around it so it may continue as it was before. its base root stock is over 3" in diamiter and branching everywhere! thank you for your tip- we love our impatiece!

water every day in hot weather?

By Anonymous

You may need to water 4 or 5 times a day in hot weather even if the plants are in 85-90% shade.

???

By Anonymous

The same thing happened to me....I have planted for years and this year they were blooming and beautiful then poof no flowers ot leaves just stems.....will they start budding again or is time to just give up?

stop fertalizing. they will

By Anonymous

stop fertalizing. they will recover

???

By Anonymous

check out downy mildew on the web it happened to mine too.I was told to pull them all out and wait 3 years before planting them again. That is a very long time.

Post new comment

Before posting, please review all comments. Due to the volume of questions, Almanac editors can respond only occasionally, as time allows. We also welcome tips from our wonderful Almanac community!

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
By submitting this form, you accept the Mollom privacy policy.