16
May
2011

Impatiens in Landscaping

impatien_tango…And this is why we like to grow the Impatiens that we do. Solid carpets of color make a strong statement. I'm holding a 6-in pot of ‘Tango Mix’ in front of the crop, but the same could be true for the ‘Xtreme Pink’, ‘Accent Burgundy’ or ‘Utopia Mix’.

For home installations or commercial applications, it is hard to beat the firepower that Impatiens brings to the garden bed. Think of it as Living Paint—it is certainly an important plant in the designer’s toolbox of color.

Our specialty is the broad range of designer colors we bring to the market. In addition to the vivid hues they are famous for, we also have a range of alternative shades for the garden designer. A few favorites that stand out this week:

  • ‘Lipstick’ is the hottest fuschia pink you've seen.
  • ‘Blue Pearl’ gleams blue-pink—it’s almost lavender. 
  • ‘Blush’ is white with a red throat.
  • The Swirl series features pastel streaks radiating from the throat.

Impatiens create perfect circular beds around the trunks of trees, or a color pathway that follows along a high traffic area like a sidewalk, fence or the approaching edge of a large garden. They form great skirts of color, so you can almost design in a Cristo sort of way, covering your beds in great sheets.

In containers, we’ve seen them bunch up in rolling mounds of color. As accent points on a business property, they are very effective on their own, providing low, lush flashes of brightness. Paired up with more dramatic material like grasses they offer a more architectural look; mix them among designer hostas to showcase the fancy green leaves over a bed of color—an inverse of the classic color over green.

Impatiens are a mainstay for medium shade plantings, but they can be used in the open sun, so long as they get some shade during the day and the soil is well-mulched. Keep in mind: the more sun they get, the more regular the watering needs to be.

We carry impatiens in several sizes, depending on the application, from the 1801 landscape flats to 1203 retail pack trays to the larger 6-in pots where a retail impact or an immediate BIG statement is needed.

Impatiens are the most popular bedding plant in America, but they don't have to be common. We try hard to give you the choices that can make your projects stand out.