jewelweed
Impatiens capensis · Balsaminaceae
jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is a annual herbaceous plant in the Balsaminaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 10 and warmer, down to about 32°F.
At a glance
| Type | forb-herb USDA |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | annual USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 4.9 ft USDA |
| Light | shade USDA |
| Water need | medium USDA |
| Growth rate | rapid USDA |
| Soil pH | 6.4–7.4 USDA |
| Flower color | Yellow USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 10 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | herb-layer Derived |
| Nursery availability | Routinely Available USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It tolerates full shade. USDA rates it as having moderate water needs. Its drought tolerance is rated low. It is recorded on soils from pH 6.4 to 7.4 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 10.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 4.9 ft, making it roughly waist to chest height. It grows quickly.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is green, medium in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is summer.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 14 to 50 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 95 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 14 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.
Propagating it
Seed is the only propagation method USDA lists. Division and cuttings are not listed as options. USDA records no cold-stratification requirement, so seed should germinate without a chilling period. Its seed spreads at a slow rate. It does not spread vegetatively, so it will stay where you put it.
Resilience and wildlife
Its fire tolerance is rated medium. Its growth form is recorded as single crown.
Role in a guild
Herb layer. In a layered planting this is the herbaceous middle — perennials and grasses that fill the space between ground cover and shrubs. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Impatiens
- pale touch-me-not Impatiens pallida
Similar role and hardiness
- pineapple Ananas comosus
- clasping coneflower Dracopis amplexicaulis
- Indian blanket Gaillardia pulchella
- Bigelow's tansyaster Machaeranthera bigelovii
- swamp smartweed Polygonum hydropiperoides
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol IMCA, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, Type, vegetative spread rate, Water need.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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