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Balsam


Impatiens balsamina

Balsam

Once a favorite of Victorian gardens, this old-fashioned annual adds an exotic, almost gaudy touch to the garden. It offers interesting, trumpet-shape blooms, mostly in shades of pink. Many selections have bicolor flowers. Balsam often self-seeds in the garden and is very easy to grow.

Plant established plants outdoors in spring after all danger of frost has passed. Balsam needs rich, well-drained soil to do best, so work in plenty of compost. (It's ideal in containers as long as you don't let the plants dry out for even a second.) Fertilize lightly but regularly.

Light:
Shade
Plant Type:
Annual
Plant Height:
1-3 feet tall
Plant Width:
1-2 feet wide
Landscape Uses:
Containers,Beds & Borders
Special Features:
Flowers,Easy to Grow
Garden Plans
Pocket Garden Plan
Plant It With
Coleus, shade-loving with blended leaf

Perfect plant partners since Victorian times, colorful coleus looks great with balsam.

Impatiens

Pair upright, spiky balsam with impatiens for a fun mix of textures.

Sweet potato vine

Give balsam in containers a skirt of sweet potato vine for a lush, elegant look.

Propagation
Seed

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Comments
Comments (1)
4219900116
weederbabe@yahoo.com wrote:

OMG I have been trying to find out what the neighbor that moved left me and now I have finally learned what it is called. And yes It does explode seeds and comes in light and dark pink. grows fast and when the seed is extracted before it's ready is coils up and is so funny. Thanks for solving my garden mystery.

7/29/2010 09:56:31 PM Report Abuse

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