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Impatiens walleriana
Also called Busy Lizzy, Patienceplant, Patient Lucy, Sultana, Zanzibar Balsam, Busy Lizzie, Balsam
In Singapore: Busy Lizzie, Patience Plant, Sultana, Impatiens (Cultivated in Singapore)
Impatiens walleriana is a popular bedding and container plant from eastern Africa, usually grown as a soft, semi-succulent perennial treated as an annual in cold climates. It is valued for its profuse flowers and grows best in shade or part shade with steady moisture.
Impatiens walleriana (syn. Impatiens sultanii), also known as busy Lizzie (British Isles), balsam, sultana, or simply impatiens, is a species of the genus Impatiens, native to eastern Africa from Kenya to Mozambique. The Latin specific epithet walleriana honours a British missionary, Horace Waller (1833–1896).
Impatiens is one of the most popular of all bedding plants for parks and gardens worldwide, typically grown in containers but also in bedding schemes. Propagation is by seed or stem cuttings (which often root readily in water).
Impatiens is perennial in frost-free growing conditions, but not hardy in temperate regions, where it is grown from seed indoors in winter before being moved outdoors as an annual. (Potted outdoor plants may be successfully overwintered indoors).
Impatiens arguta · Spotted snapweed · Jewelweed · Impatiens denisonii · Himalayan Balsam · New Guinea Impatiens · Touch-me-not Balsam · Hardy Impatiens · Pale touch-me-not · Impatiens pseudoviola · Ceylon Balsam · Impatiens stenantha
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Impatiens walleriana by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
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.
