My host started a monologue at a recent dinner party about a plant that he discovered in his garden. He was thrilled with the result.
He said it had green leaves. What a clue! It had large, yellow flowers. He found it most amazing that the seed capsule appeared in its own garden, which was wild and shady. He was amazed that every time he touched a seed capsule to collect seeds, it would explode scattering them all around.
It was almost dark and dinner was about to start. My host asked me if I would like to go out and look at the plant.
Naturally, I would. And we did.
TWO FAMILIAR JAWELWEEDS
The plant was easily identified: it was a jewelweed species (one of the Impatiens genera), also known for its obvious name, touch-me-not.
My host raised an eyebrow when “jewelweed” was mentioned. He then shook his head and said that he knew about jewelweed. He pointed out a sea of orange blossoms still glowing in the fading sunlight at the lower end his property.
Yes, it was jewelweed, but it was also different from the ones we were next to. My host was astonished to see the orange-flowered jewelweed. It is botanically Impatiens scapensis. Impatiens pallida is the jewelweed with pale yellow flowers. It’s sometimes called pale touch me-not.
Is it a weevil?
These two plants, not the entire Impatiens Genus, show how arbitrary our judgments of plants can be. This genus has a remarkable quality: the plants can grow brightly colored flowers in shade.
If you are looking for an annual plant that will spread and return every year, their “impatient” way of seed dispersal may be a positive quality. A plant that excels at this task may end up becoming a weed, as in the case of my host’s spotted touch-me not.
The “weed” name of Jewelweed has been used to stigmatize the species. However, both species are beautiful enough that dealers may occasionally offer them as native plants.
The Himalayan jewelweed (Impatiens gluliferae) is another jewelweed that has flowers in a variety of colors, from pink to red. This plant is a “coarse annual for the garden” and tends to naturally grow in this country. Hmmm. Is it a garden flower or a plant weed?
The hybrid Impatiens varieties are more rare and highly-bred. Garden balsam (Impatiens Balsamina) is a tall plant that bears double flowers, which are reminiscent of miniature roses. It was more popular in the past decades than it is today. It’s still a great annual plant that is worth growing. The plants can be grown from seeds or self-sown in moderation, tolerates sunlight or part shade and bears beautiful flowers all summer, especially in some of its cultivated forms.
The most well-known member of the genus is “impatiens”, which is not jewelweed. The dazzling white flowers or some other shade of red brighten shady gardens all over the world, from the Atlantic to Pacific.
A yellow-flowered impatien variety, called African Queen, was introduced to the market a few years back. You might also have noticed the similarities between African Queen and the pale and spotted jewelweeds if you looked beyond all the ballyhoo.