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Balfour's touch-me-not

Impatiens balfourii

Also called Kashmir Balsam, Balfour's Jewelweed, Balfour’s Impatiens, Poor Man's Orchid

Balfour's touch-me-not
Photo: Hectonichus, CC BY-SA 3.0
Family
Balsaminaceae (Balsamin family)
Grows as
Orchid
Safety
Not toxic to cats or dogs (ASPCA).
Native range
N. Pakistan to W. Himalaya
Climate
temperate

About

Impatiens balfourii is a species of the genus Impatiens known by the common names Balfour's touch-me-not, Kashmir balsam, and poor man's orchid. It belongs to the family Balsaminaceae.

Where it grows

It is native to the Himalayas, particularly Kashmir and surrounding areas, where it grows in mountains of 5,000 to 6,000 feet. It was brought back to England and many other European countries as a garden plant, and then it became popular in the San Francisco Bay Area and other parts of the United States. It can now be found growing wild as a garden escapee in Europe, on the US Pacific Coast, and in Wisconsin, where it is a restricted species because of its invasiveness.

Other Impatiens plants

Stemless Balsam · Impatiens arguta · Paleyellow touch-me-not · Impatiens auricoma · Spotted snapweed · Impatiens bicolor · Impatiens bokorensis · Jewelweed · Heart Leaf Balsam · Tree Dwelling Balsam · Impatiens denisonii · Impatiens dorjeekhandui

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Impatiens balfourii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.

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