Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Impatiens walleriana
Common name
Impatiens, Garden Balsam, Busy Lizzie
Family
Balsaminaceae
Where found
Damp and shady situations. Forest margins, roadsides, disturbed sites, around habitations, and along streams. Sydney area and the mountains to the west. Occasionally coastal farther south.
Notes
Introduced annual or perennial herb to 1 m high. Fruit fleshy. Stems hairless, more or less fleshy. Leaves alternating up the stems, the uppermost sometimes opposite each other, 3–11 cm long, 10–40 mm wide, glossy, on stalks 10-40 mm long, margins almost entire to slightly toothed or scalloped, surfaces hairless, tips pointed. Flowers pink, orange, red, purple, or white, with 5 petals 10–20 mm long, uppermost petal largest, lateral petals fused the towards base. Lowermost sepal about 10 mm long, whitish, with a spur 20-30 mm long. The other 2 sepals about 5 mm long, green, and easily missed. Flowers usually 2 or 3 together. Flowering: throughout the year.
PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Impatiens~walleriana (accessed 19 January, 2021)
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