Impatiens care
Growing Impatiens
From the time they were discovered in East Africa, impatiens have become one of the largest selling annual bedding plant. After 40 years of breeding, Impatiens have come a long way with new varieties introducing a rainbow of colors (except blue), single and double flowers and assorted heights. Impatiens provide a non-stop splash of color to any shaded area. It will bloom all season long until a killing frost will finally put it to rest.
Impatiens are one of the easier plants to grow. Given the right conditions, they will provide mounds of brightly colored flowers 1-2 ft. tall from spring to fall. They are great in borders, containers, window boxes and hanging baskets and pouches. 
Care
Primarily considered a shade/ semi-shade plant. Newer varieties called sun impatiens (Viva) tolerate full sun.
Because it is a heat-loving, tropical plant, it should be planted after all danger of frost has passed or when the soil temperature is 60F.
Plant 6″ to 12″ apart in well-drained, rich organic soil. The closer you plant them the faster they will fill in a border. in shade/semi-shade. Plant impatiens in shade to part shade. They can tolerate full sun but will not grow as well and need protection from the hot afternoon sun.
Watering
Impatiens like moist but not wet soil in order to grow well. Be sure they get 1″ of water every week and water more often in the heat of summer and if in full sun. If allowed to dry out they will wilt dramatically and sulk dropping its leaves and flowers. Wilting also causes stress and drains energy making them more susceptible to insect or disease damage.
Fertilize
When planting, feed with a slow-release fertilizer or monthly with a balanced fertilizer. Feed more often when container grown or if plants are competing for nutrients such as growing under a tree. Too much fertilizer can cause leggy plants and reduced flowering.
Tall/leggy plants
If your Impatiens are tall and leggy by mid summer pinch them back to 6 inches and they should regrow as bushier plants.
Propagation: Softwood cutting taken in late winter, early spring. Seeds-sow indoors 10-12 wks before last frost date. Seeds need light and temperatures of 70-75F to germinate cover with plastic to provide humidity. Germination takes 15-20 days.
Troubleshooting:
Root rot- over-watering, poor drainage
INSV Impatiens necrotic spot virus-leaf & stem ring spots that are yellow, white, gray or brown/black.
TSWV Tomato spotted wilt virus – ring spots on foliage transmitted by thrips
Fungal leaf spots-plant stress
Spider mites, thrips, mealybugs and aphids.
* impatiens downy mildew, a fungus (Plasmopara obducens)
My red, orange, and pink impatiens turn partially white as if they are fading/losing their color. I read about the fungus, but this just appears to be a bleaching out of the color. This is happening to the ones that are in the sun, not the shade variety.
Why do the flowers hang down?
My double impatient got frost damage, all leaves fall off (this was in December in CA) and had creamy white stems. I ended up throwing it away, but was it actually ok or was it dead? I want to buy another one and how to prevent the frost? I have it in a pot. How do we know when it is dead?
In response to were I live. I live In AR and the temps have reached the lower 90’s and looks like their here to stay. It’s not even cool in the shade and the heat Index Is pushing triple digits that’s why I have It Indoors. It did drop all flowers and buds and the occasional yellowing leave and drop but other wise is in great shape. Can I leave It Indoors?
My latest Impatien plant is doing better. I have It In shade out on my deck. I hade to cut back but I do have new growth so I think it will be OK. Now I had to buy another one the other day. I moved It to my sun room for filtered sun light in the morning. I have It hanging In a window with a humidifier Will that be OK or do I need to place It on a tray with pebbles Instead?. It’s just getting too hot out side and I’m afraid It will struggle and I don’t want to go through It again. Thank you very much
I gave up on my Impatience cuttings and bought a new one So far there has been no new growth and now all the new buds are dropping. I keep It In bright Indirect light and water when needed Nothing is helping. What am I doing wrong? It’s a double and I really don’t want to lose it since their nor easy to find. Thank you so much.
Good morning. I have two double Impatience plants I took as cuttings last summer. They grew like crazy over the winter. Now My big one has leaves turning yellow and the leaves look like their turning white. They get some sun In the morning and I make sure they don’t dry out to much. I cut the big one down and took some cuttings. My smaller one stopped growing and the leaves look awful as they don’t even look green any more. Should I throw that one out?
Frost damage
Help!! My beautiful impatiens suffered a frost!! Can I save them?! I’m so sad 🙁
If half the plant is suffering from root rot, can I save the rest..how? Thanks
Pinching impatiens
We just bougjt a house in southern California. There is a large bed filled with large impatiens, the stalks on some of them are very thick. In 1994 a movie was shot this house and when we watched it we noticed that the beds look the same now as they did in 1994. Is it possible that these are the same impatiens? Some of the plants are leggy. Is this a good time of year (January) to pinch them back. Today it is 70 degrees but last week it was in the thirties at night.
Thank you.
Caterpillar frass
I have some wonderful sunpatiens on my porch and they have bloomed all summer since middle of May. Also beside the pots of impatiens are 2 Boston Ferns up in plant stands. All of a sudden there are tons of little black balls on the concrete floor of the porch all around the ferns…. don’t see them on other side of sunpatiens. Do you have any idea what these little black balls are. They can be easily mashed and just tend to smear when swept off the porch. Could these be coming from catepillars? I have seen a few catepillars on the porch but not on the plants.
Forgot to say I live in South Carolina near Charleston.
Should I pull off the yellow leaves that have developed on my Impatiens?
Impatiens not blooming
help! My beautiful leafy green impatiens in a mother’s day basket are no longer blooming once the original flowers fell off. The greens look beautiful, but there are no ore flowers.
We live in an early cold state.
If I put down Preen on my flower beds a month ago and then planted impatiens. They never bloomed and look as though they might be dead. Was that a bad idea? Any suggestions for what I could plant now in place of them for a border? tHANKS
My impatiens in my hanging pot and in 2 pots on my front porch have been doing really well — blooming and growing consistently. All of a sudden the impatiens in the hanging pot and just one of the pots on the porch have been almost destroyed. All the buds and the flowers were gone one morning in both pots and the stems are all leggy now. The other pot on the porch is still thriving and doing well. I’m at a loss here since it can’t be an animal (wouldn’t be able to reach the hanging basket) and I don’t see any caterpillars in either pot (I’ve gone out at night to check on both). Any thoughts on what could be destroying them? I’m disappointed … and my porch is now uneven with one pot nice and bright and the other just plain ugly.
I live in E Tennessee and planted impatiens in long, shade bed last year and they did beautifully. Bushy and full. I added pot ash to the bed over the winter and replanted this year, adding some good potting soil to the mix; however, the new plants have not grown and bushed out as the plants did last year. Have added Osmocote to the plants for food. My neighbor has the same problem – first year good and next year not so much, no matter where they are planted. What can we do the the bed to insure a good crop next year?
My hanging pots of impatients the flowers are blooming however the leaves are turning yellow and dropping off. They are hanging on my front porch which is mostly shady. Don’t know what’s going on with them .. I live in Ohio
I have planted impatients many times but this year just aren’t doing well. They are a nice shade of dark green but they aren’t flowering as powerful as they should. I’m wondering if a possible “almost” frost has stunted their growth and if so if there is anything I can do to save them before I pull them all out and start all over. I have fertilized once a week to hopefully jump start their growth but yo no avail…..
Please help 🙁
Root rot
I transplanted my new guinea impatient and watered it every other day, it is in a moss metal hanging basket. It receives morning light and partial shade, For the last week we have been getting a lot of rain and its cold now everything has wilted and I notice on the green leaves they are turning brown on the tips and new buds are dropping off. My friend gave it some plant vitamins still not helping. I took it in the house and place it under a light. Could it be suffering from root rot? If so can it be saved or is it a total loss?
I just planted about 36 impatiens in various places around my yard. A few days after I planted them, one looked like it had gotten squashed. I attributed it to a recent party but now in one of the beds almost all of them are like this. They are laying over on their sides, it does not look like the stems are rotten at all. A few of them look bent but most of them just look like they fell over. After a few days the leaves are wilted. When is was 3-5 I thought it might be squirrels but now I’m wondering if it is the plants. Could they have brought something from the nursery? They are in a shady bed that does not get rainwater, I water with a hose every 2-4 days. The soil is most likely poor. Thank you!
Pot bound impatiens
I got a pot of Impatients for a early House Warming gift. 2 days after receiving them they’re drooping and loosing flowers. The soil was dry and they looked a little limp after first day of shade. So I watered and moved to what I thought was a shader area. When I got home soil was dry to the bone. It looks as if they are dying. Now its the day of the house warming party and I have no clue what to do. Don’t want the person that gave this gift to me to be offended in any kind of way. How do I get them to bounce back or are they dying for real?
Spacing impatiens
I have a flower bed in full shade along the side of my house. We have 5 small bushes planted in the bed and I find planted impatiens is the best flower to plant in between the bushes (Decent amount of open space between bushes). My question is, I buy flats of a variety of colored impatiens and when I plant them I’m never quite sure how far apart to put them. I’d like each section to fill up completely with the flowers. So when I plant them, do I plant each little individual flower separately or do I plant 2-4 together 12 inches apart. I usually plant each individual plant separate, but I’ve never gotten the full look I’m hoping for. Any advise would be greatly appreciated!
Spacing impatiens
I’m planting double impatiens in my garden and I would like to know how many inches the spread is and how far apart to plant them.
Aphids on wintering impatiens
Hello,
I have a VERY large impatient plant as a house plant, but has somehow acquired aphids. I have sprayed it with an insecticidal soap and seems to have “controlled” the darn things for now. What I am noticing is the stems of the leaves have black streaking and easily fall off. Some are found wilted around the plant on the floor, seemingly overnight. Is this from the aphids or the insecticide or some other critter? I really don’t want to cut it way back to control the bugs, but I may have to start over. Also, I have other plants in the same room. How far away should they be so as not to infest the rest of my plants?
I have impatients in a shady flower bed and they’ve done wonderfully all summer. i assume that they will die off with the 1st frost. Do I pull them up, cut them down, or is there something else to do to prepare for the fall and winter?
Every year, usually starting in August, our north facing window box impatiens here in central Ohio develop small white spots on the leaves. As the spots grow, they develop what look like black rings around the white spots. Sometimes the spots “punch out” leaving holes. The leaves eventually turn yellow and drop off. It does not affect the blooms. Any ideas? Someone i know suggested that if it bacterial based, then next year I should use a 10% bleach solution to disinfect the boxes before putting in soil. Also, that i might do better with a soiless mix for impatiens. Have you had any success with that potting mix? Does this sound like bacteria? If fungal, I can try a fungicide.
Viny weed in impatiens
I have a flower bed of impatiens that come back each year and grow beautifully. This year, however, the plants have been plaqued by something that looks like a silky vine, wrapped around the plant’s stem, running from one plant to another, and eventually choking some of them. The silky vine has a white bloom on it also. I keep trying to carefully remove the vine, but it is wrapped around each stem several times, makes the plant very fragile, and comes right back within a day or two. I have taken a sample of the vine to some of the gardening shops around here, but no one has been able to advise a treatment. Would you be able to give me some advice on how to save my impatiens? Thank you.
Impatiens in container
I have a brick flower bed in a shaded covered alcove with no drainage. Can I plant Impatiens? What kind of soil should I use and how often should I water.
My impatiens’ leaves are curling under. Any ideas what the problem might be?
Thanks.
Thanks for the response.
Just one question, though. Are ants harmful to plants or not?
Thanks
Ruth
My impatiens were blooming nicely until recently. Now there are few flowers and the plants seem to be shrinking. I have them in large pots on a terrace in NYC. There are lots of ants running around all over them. Do they cause harm to the plants? I don’t think I have over watered or under watered – I have been growing plants on the terrace for years. Also, this is the second year I’ve got mold on my phlox, before the flowers have even bloomed. Should I dig up the plant? Is it a lost cause?
Thanks for your help.
Ruth
Fungal Stem rot
I have 9 impatiens beds. Six are mostly shaded, but two get sun from 10 to about 4. They are irrigated and though mounded the soil is has a lot of clay. I have planted them in these locations for the past 7 years and have had few problems. They are beginning to mound an getting about a foot tall. However, there have been 12 or 15 nice-sized healthy plants die recently. The visible problem is a leison at the base of each stem, which one stem at a time cuts completely through causing the stem to lay on the ground and die – separated from the root ball. I checked for the “yellow ooze” that I saw you talk about in one answer above, but didn’t really see any “yellow” substance. Rather, it seems more like a rot at the base of the stem. Based on the sun stress and the semi-clay soil, do you think I have some fungus disease. If so, is there a particular fungicide that is recommended?
Paul
paul@KCRock.com
Leaf spot disease
My Impatiens have been planted in window bow planters for well over a month (In Norfolk, Va) and seemed to be thriving until this week, I noticed what looked to me to be purple spotting on the bottom of the leaves, and the leaves are curling around the edges. Are my beautiful plants dying or is there something I can do to save them? Thank you for any responses, oh, I water them every morning, only until I see the water coming from the bottom, I recently fertilized them with Miracle-grow, and they get brief sun around mid day. I’ve grown impatiens in the same areas before and had no problems.
HELP! i think i killed my impatiens, i sprsyed some weed killer on them and now they look depressed. They were blooming beautifully and now they have shrunk down and are laying down, can i save them to make them vibrant and pretty again? i tried watering them some more but nothing has happened yet!
Leaf spot disease
I have a beautiful gardening box around my deck. I planted impatients and they were very vibrant and beautiful.I noticed in the past 2 days that thay are thining out and some of my plants leaves are yellow and getting purple specks on them. I need help on what I can do to save them or bring them back to the vibrant colors they are!?
Wilting impatiens
Every year for Mother’s Day my son buys me a beautiful impatient hanging basket. After a couple of weeks it has lost the fullness and starts dropping flowers. Leaves also turning yellow. I know they dry out quickly; I water every day, is that too much? I live in Ohio. I have it hanging on the front porch on a south-west corner that is shielded from direct sun. Joanne
White spots on flowers
Hi! I just planted some very healthy impatiens and have been taking care to water them since it has been very hot here the past few days. When I went outside to water them this morning I noticed some of my flowers have petals that are turning white – they are very blotchy – too the point that my hot pink flowers are looking white. Is there something that is attacking them? If so, what should I use to stop it from harming the other healthy impatiens in the bed? Thanks so much!
What animals will eat impatiens and how do I prevent it?
It may be some kind of animal(deer, rabbit, chipmunk or squirrel) that is eating your impatiens.
INSV virus
My impatiens are streaked with white and the white blooms are brown around the edges. whats wrong?
Leaves dying
My stargazer lily has flowered lovely but the leaves are starting to die
Can u tell me what’s wrong and how I can save it please
Some friends of mine are trying to figure out how long an Impatiens live and what its uses are and or its purposes to nature.
I have taken my Double impatiens inside, it was budding and flowering very well. Now there are crystal like eggs on the foliage of the plant. There is only one flower and no buds. What is the crystal like stuff? Is it a disease?
Spider mites
I have an plant the my daughter gave me for mothers day almost 3 years ago. I live in MO so I have kept the plant potted and inside. It has recently gotten webs forming on the top leaf groups that seem to be taking the color out of it and slowly killing it. I took it outside and sprinkled it with 7 dust and then cut the stems after it appeared the bugs were gone. I brought it back inside and it started to sprout again. Now the same problem is plauging it. There are small bugs crawling around in the webs. Can anyone give me any more ideas.
Impatiens grow tips
These plants require a very light sandy soil around the base. also plant in small mounds. this then reduces and mold/wilt issues. keep mulch away from the plant do not plant in an area where the sun will hit them during the afternoon – morning sun or partial shade.
make cuttings from newly purchased plants to cut cost .
Thrips?
I have 200 flats of impatients planted in front of a high rise I manage in Margate NJ on the beach (9600condos.com) .We recently won the pride of Margate award for our beautiful garden. I read with interest your response to petals turning white and streaking as I recently noticed this has happened in certain areas of the garden and only to the deep purple color. Pinks,lavender, coral, white,reds are all ok. Curious problem that I have never seen before.
Stem rot
I planted impatiens in a new bed this year and I am having trouble with some of them rotting at the base of the stem and the whole stem is dead within a day or so this has wiped out at least half of my plants. The impatiens that I have left are beautiful and healthy looking is there anything I can do to stop this fungus or whatever it is from destroying the rest of my plants.
I am a procrastinator and I wanted some advice if it was too late/waste of time to plant annuals like impatients in my yard?
White spots on flowers
hi, i have bright purple impatiens. they get morning sun until about 11:00am then shade for the rest of the day. the flowers now look like someone poured bleach on them. thay have white streaks and sploches all over them. what causes this. i never let them wilt, but i don’t keep them wet all the time either?
Impatiens attack
hi,I live in Michigan and my impatients are growing nicely after I’ve planted them but then in some places I find ripped or thorn appart branches and it looks like someone bit them from the bottom trunk;I even have put some moth balls arownd them; the flowers are so beautiful and I want to cry for them; I am desperate to find what is killing them; they are so lovely ….do you think it is an animal or they are getting rotten; maybe I love them to much….
Yellow leaves
My impatients have yellow leaves and have not opened yet. What am I doing wrong?
thank you
Elizabeth
P.S. to the above: My impatients that have the most yellowing leaves have a spike plant in the middle. Will these two plants work together or are they not compatible? Please inform.
Thank you,
Julie
Yellow leaves
I have some impatients on the north side of the house that get some morning and some evening sun (live in Central Wisconsin). The leaves are starting to turn yellow. What could be causing this problem? Please inform.
Thank you,
Julie
Wilty impatiens
My daughter bought me an Impatient plant, for Mother’s day, from her school. It came in a little plastic cup. The flowers are falling off and it looks like it is wilting. Since it is not officially Mother’s day, I am not really supposed to have seen this plant. My daughter is devistated about this. How can we fix this poor little plant?
Thrips
i have a greenhouse for the first time, my plants were doing great, now i have a white mark around the leaves which is spreading what might it be and how do i solve it
Buds dry and drop
i bought impatiens a week ago and i hav planted it in a pot since i live in an apartment.. the problem is that its buds are not blooming…the buds become dry and fall off….could u pls give me some suggestions so that the buds starts 2 bloom into flowers…
Small, spindly growth
I have alot of impatiens here in san diego, all in 20″ planters. They were doing fine last season but this season quite a few of them are growing weird. They tend to be growing stems from every node on every branch and turning into this multi legged tiny leaf growth of a plant. I tried cutting them back but they grow the same way. eventually they just get so spindley and very little leaf growth I have to get rid of them. I have them on a timer with 3 days watering at 10 minutes. they get plenty of water but i don’t think too much or is 3 days too much? why do they grow this way? it looks pretty ugly and I want to stop it from happening on more of my impatiens. any suggestions? Thanks!
Leggy and spindly plants
hi dear the leaves of my impatiens become long and slim what can i do.
Botrytis
I live in downtown Richmond, VA and traditionally have had wonderful blooming & vibrant impatiens which seemed to be the case for this year as well. I decided to plant some Tomato plants in pots along side my impatiens and also started off well, however about a month ago my tomatoes seem to have caught some sort of mold / disease ( believe it is “Gray Mold” …. or so I have read and for which I was told nothing could be done?). Now it seems that my impatiens have contracted some sort of fungi / mold where the leaves and blooms are turning white, somewhat botchie? Is this indeed something from my Tomatoes? Is there anything that can be done? I’ve never had this problem in years past?? Never have had tomatoes in past years either.
Thanks for your advice and expertise.
What can i do if our impatiens in hanging baskets are getting too much water from too much rain here in massachusetts. We have already lost 4 baskets .
I, too, have been having trouble with my impatiens. I think my fertilizer had too much nitrogen. Can I reverse the nitrogen content somehow so they will continue to bloom?
My impatients are not blooming as they usually do. Too much fertilizer or too much water?
Thanks for info on impatiens. I have a pot full that are very tall and leggy. You say they can be pinched back. Excatly what does that mean? CanI merely snip them off at 6 inches or so? Or is there a point on the stem that will be best? The plant seems otherwise fairly healthy. Just not too pretty any more. I appreciate the qweb help.–Janet
I have a double impatien plant which I kept over the winter and probagated to make about 8 new plants did very well and the new plants looked healthy and nice. I then put them outside for the summer with new potting soil. The potting soil, (actually I used two different potting soils on two different occasions)was supposed to be organic. Anyway, now the leaves are small and slightly curly and there are not new buds on the stems. It is this way with all the plants even though I used different potting soil. Do you have and answer for this?
I have a beautiful impatiens plant that I would like to keep over the winter for next year. Is this possible? I live in Missouri.
I live in southern CA and have always had great luck with growing impatiens. This year although I have replanted several times I am continually losing all the leaves on my plants. The only difference I am aware of in this area is a new resident lizard. Is it possible he is eating my plants? If so what can I plant in a partially sunny southern facing spot where I want lots of color that my lizard won’t like to dine on? Thanks
Yellow leaves
my impatiens leaves are turning yellow and some have little or no flowers, what am i doing wrong and what should i know