Colorful impatiens!
Planting, Growing, and Caring for Impatiens
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Impatiens are one of the rare annual plants that will provide colorful blooms in shady gardens—so they’re also perfect for hanging baskets or containers on porches. Learn how to plant, grow, and care for impatiens.
About Impatiens
Impatiens are very popular as both a bedding and hanging plant. Also called “Busy Lizzies,” these beauties are low-maintenance and don’t even need pinching! The genus name, Impatiens, is a Latin word describing how its seeds shoot out of its pods when ripe (the slightest touch can make a ripe impatiens seed pod burst open and scatter its contents).
Ornamental impatiens are primarily from two groups, Impatiens walleriana and New Guinea impatiens, Impatiens hawkeri. The two look different, but growing them is pretty much the same. I. wallerina cultivars are less tolerant of sunshine than the New Guinea hybrids, and the latter has larger foliage.
Of short to medium height, most impatiens varieties grow 8 to 15 inches tall, although some types reach 30 inches. They are perennials in frost-free areas but are grown as annuals or houseplants everywhere else.
Use impatiens for a splash of all-season color in any area that receives partial shade. Because of their shallow root system and low height, impatiens are ideally suited to containers like hanging baskets, window boxes, or deck railing planters. They also work well in the “filler” role in larger containers.
Growing
Impatiens are not fussy and, if planted in the correct location, will thrive with little effort–one of the reasons they are popular.
- The most important thing to remember about impatiens is to water them regularly. Keep the soil moist but not too wet. If the plants dry out, they will lose their leaves. If you over-water the plants, it encourages fungal diseases.
- Container-grown impatiens will benefit from fertilizer applied every two weeks when watering.
- Deadheading, while not strictly necessary, will improve their appearance and encourage more blooms.
Overwintering Impatiens
Impatiens are hardy in zones 10-12, but even a light frost will kill them. If you have a favorite color you’d like to overwinter, either take cuttings or dig up the plant and bring it inside. Depending on your available sunlight and day length, a grow light may be necessary.
Propagating Impatiens
Impatiens can be easily propagated from stem cuttings–a great way to get more of a favorite color or gift it to a friend. At the end of the growing season, taking cuttings and growing them over the winter may be easier than digging up entire plants and trying to keep them alive in the house.
- Inspect your plant to make sure it is pest-free.
- Sanitize your shears with alcohol.
- Choose several strong stems and snip them 4-6 inches below the bloom.
- Remove the flower and all but the upper one or two pairs of leaves.
- Place the cuttings in a clear glass container filled with clean water. If your water is treated by your municipality, let the water sit on the counter for 24 hours first to allow most of the chemicals to dissipate.
- In a week or two, when fine white roots appear, transition the cuttings to the soil in one of two ways:
- Plant them in individual pots filled with moist potting mix.
- Add a bit of potting mix to your glass container daily until it is completely filled with soil after a week. After filling the jar with soil, remove the plants and repot.
- Lollipop series (I. walleriana) ‘Fruit Punch Rose’ is a compact, well-branched variety with superbly vivid colors.
- Tom Thumb Series (I. balsamina) is a dwarf variety with large, double, brightly colored flowers.
- Beacon® impatiens are highly resistant to downy mildew and will keep blooming reliably until frost.
- Swirl Series (I. walleriana) has pretty pink and orange flowers with petals in red.
Andy Wilcox
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I have 7 containers outside with alot of plants and the impatiens have done well all summer. Can I leave them in the containers sorry the winter or should I put them in the ground?
Are impatiens annuals?
Impatiens can be annuals or perennials. The annuals, which most people purchase, are Impatiens balsamina. The perennials are Impatiens wallerana.
When is is time to cut impatiens down?
It's true that Impatiens walleriana--not wallerana--is a perennial, but there are many perennial species, including I. hawkeri, New Guinea Impatiens, which are commonly used in hybridization to obtain sun-tolerant varieties.
You may remove dead leaves and pinch of spent blossoms any time. Towards mid- to late-summer, your impatiens (which like cool weather) start to look “leggy.” Now you can pinch (cut off) the tips of them stems back 3 or 4 inches with your pruners or even your fingers. This will encourage a nice shape, too. If they’re really out of control, you can cut them back the entire plant to 6 inches off the ground in late summer and it will rebound next year. We don’t know where you live but keep in mind that impatiens have to overwinter inside if your temperature gets below 34ºF.
How to get rid of the yellow leaves on my impatiens?
Yellow leaves could be an indicator of a nutrient deficiency. Try fertilizing them with a water soluble, quick-release fertilizer once a week for the remainder of the growing season. Also, impatiens like indirect light. If they are receiving too much sun, the leaves could be burning.
I bought six New Guinea Impatien plants July 13. Two are doing well and the others are lying flat on the ground. I put them into large planters with new potting soil. They were well watered the first day and then they collapsed, so they've had a sprinkle (2 mm according to our rain gauge.) They are on the west side of the garage under an elm so it is scattered shade. They get a little more sun in the evening as the sun gets low in the sky. We back up to a park so it is quite windy at times. Do I let them lay? Cut them back? Water more? Water less?
