Happy Urban Dirt

If you like flowering plants, Impatiens balsamina is a lesser known but very pretty plant. Sound familiar?

Also It also has other names such as balsamina, joy or madama, and is one of the plants that you can have in your garden and enjoy its color. But how is it? What are its features? Is it tough to care for? We talk about all this below.

What does Impatiens balsamina look like?

Impatiens balsamina is a plant native to Southeast Asia. It is a herbaceous plant whose leaves are elliptical and ovate. In addition, if you touch them, you will notice that they are slightly waxy, especially on the beam. It does not grow to a height of more than 60 centimeters, and the stems are very branched and straight.

But the most pretty thing about this plant is not its leaves (which attract attention anyway), but its flowers.

They appear in March and will easily survive until June (you know, it also depends on the weather). It is very profuse in flowers, that is, it will give you a lot (of course, if you take good care of it). The flowers can be of different colors; they are orange, red, purple (or bluish) and pink. All have three sepals and a tubular spur. Although now you can find double and even triple flowers.

After the flowers come the fruit. And you may not know it, but that’s where its scientific name comes from, Impatiens (which, yes, means “impatient”)The fruits produce what is called balochory that what it does is that when these fruits are touched, while they are ripe, they end up exploding and spreading seeds. That is why they are called impatient, because they cannot wait for the fruits to be harvested and the seeds to be planted.

Impatiens balsamina care

Now that you know a little more about Impatiens balsamina, would you like to have it in your garden? Finding this plant is not tough, although the most popular way to obtain it is to buy affordable seeds.

But buying it doesn’t mean it will outlive you. Because you need to know what the main care is. And we can assist you with that.

location and temperature

The first thing you should know is that Impatiens balsamina needs full sun.. It loves sunlight and the more time it spends in the sun each day, the better it grows and blooms. Now, depending on where you live and where you have it, it is possible that direct sun can burn it (for example in the south of Spain). In such cases, it is better to have it in a semi-shady place (meaning having a lot of indirect delicate but only a few hours of direct sun when it is not too intense).

As for temperature, the ideal would be between 15 and 25ºC. However, it can stay down to 5ºC. Below this value it is normal for growth to stop. or even put your health at risk. On the other hand, when the temperature is higher than 30ºC, the plant will have problems with further development and it is possible that the flowers will fall off.

Subsoil

When planting Impatiens balsamina, remember that it is a plant that does not like drought or stagnant water.

For this reason, we recommend preparing a mixture of sandy soil with a pH between 6 and 6.5, slightly acidic and with drainage. If possible, add some fertile soil so that it contains enough nutrients.

Impatiens balsamina seeds are sown in spring in the ground or in a pot.

Irrigation

We won’t say that this care is basic, because it is the most complicated you will find. As we have said before, Impatiens balsamina is a plant that does not tolerate drought or flooding.. It also requires more water than other plants because the soil must always be wet, otherwise the plant will die.

Therefore, controlling this aspect is your priority.

One piece of advice we can give you is that in the summer you water it once every two days, in the morning, so that it has enough moisture and the sun doesn’t desiccated it out. In the evening you should check if it’s ok (and add water if not). In spring and autumn it can withstand watering once every five days. In winter, you can water it once a week or every ten days.

These are general data; they must be adjusted to the location and temperature at which they are located.

Subscriber

Being a plant that blooms abundantly, the subscriber is always welcome. It should be fertilized only in spring and summer, always every two months.

Apply water-soluble, although foliar application is also acceptable (In this case, water should be added after two hours to remove excess fertilizer so that the sun does not burn the leaves.)

pruning

When Impatiens balsamina reaches 25 centimeters in height, to stimulate its further development and growth, it is recommended to prune the buds of the upper branches.

However, as time passes and branches become venerable and chunky, it may be necessary to prune more often to get fresh branches.

Another thing to eliminate from your plant is dead flowers to prevent pests from destroying the plant.

Plagues and diseases

Impatiens balsamina is not a “warlike” plant, but it is easily attacked by pests or diseases. For example, leaf beetles, spider mites, aphids, whiteflies or fungi They are the most common in this plant.

Many diseases are caused by excess or deficiency of water and/or delicate.

Multiplication

If you want to propagate this plant, you can do so both with seeds and cuttings. They should be collected in spring.always at least 10 centimeters long. Place them in a pot with wet soil and indirect delicate until they begin to germinate on their own.

Do you dare to plant Impatiens balsamina in your garden?