The alegría plant they sell most often looks like a fragile grass, with many flowers that, although small, are very colorful and very cheerful. But the genus to which it belongs, Impatiens, is made up of about a thousand different species, mostly distributed in tropical climate regions of the world.
Naming them all would take us so much time that we could write a book about them. But we will see the most known types of joy plantswhich are quite numerous as you can check.
Auricoma of impatience
Image – Wikimedia/Bendzh
The Auricoma of impatience It is a natural species from the Comoros archipelago, in southeastern Africa. It is a small plant, which grows about 30 centimeters in height, and that after flowering and producing seed in the same year of its germination, it dies. The flowers are yellow, about 2-3 centimeters, and bloom in spring-summer.
balsamina impatiens
Image – Wikimedia/Lazaregagnidze
The balsamina impatiens It is one of the most common species. It is known as balm or joy and is native to South Asia. It is a grass that can live for a few years if the temperatures are always high.; Otherwise, it will be a beautiful annual plant to decorate the balcony or the terrace during the warm months. It grows up to 60 centimeters high and produces lilac, pink, white, yellow or red flowers in spring-summer.
Impatiens hawkeri
Image – Wikimedia/Forest & Kim Starr
The Impatiens hawkeri It is a perennial or annual herbaceous plant -it all depends on the heat or cold of the climate-, native to Southeast Asia. It grows up to 60 centimeters in height, although it can reach 80 centimeters, especially if planted in the ground. Its flowers can be of very varied colors, such as pink, red, white or yellow.
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Impatiens marianae
Image – Wikimedia/Diego Delso
The Impatiens marianae It is a most curious species: it has dark green and white leaves, so it would be easy to think that it is a selected hybrid, but it is not: it is a pure species native to India. It measures between 30 and 40 centimeters high, and produces pink flowers. Now it is very important that the temperatures stay above 10°C and below 30°C, as it does not like extreme cold or heat.
Impatiens morsei
The Impatiens morsei It is a natural annual herb from China. It measures 20 to 40 centimeters in height, and has green leaves with a very marked midrib.. Its flowers can be white, pink or lilac, and although they are small, when they germinate in the spring they greatly beautify the plant. Of course, unlike other Impatiens, it is a species that prefers shady places.
Impatiens phengklaii
The Impatiens phengklaii It is a rare plant which, without its flower, it would be difficult to think that it is really an Impatiens. Why am I saying this? Because its stem thickens so much that it forms a light brown caudex and about 5 centimeters wide. The flowers are reddish and it is a species native to Thailand, so we are talking about a species that will suffer if exposed to both temperatures below 13ºC and those above 27ºC.
Impatiens psittacina
The Impatiens psittacina It is a grass native to Southeast Asia that reaches about 50 centimeters in height. Its leaves are green and its flowers are red. It is a very rare type of joy plant, which, however, like other Impatiens, germinates within days or weeks – depending on when the seeds were collected and their viability – and grows rapidly.
Impatiens niammiamensis
Image – Flickr/Maja Dumat
The Impatiens niammiamensis It is a species native to Africa that lives for several years, as it is a perennial shrub. It reaches 60 centimeters in height and its flowers are red and yellow, in the shape of a hat.. Given its origin, it should not be forgotten if the thermometer drops below 10°C.
Impatiens ‘Sunpatiens’
Image – Flickr/Serres Fortier
The Impatiens ‘Sunpatiens’ It is a hybrid resulting from the crossing of a Impatiens hawkeri of which we have already spoken, and two other varieties. They reach a height of about 20 centimeters, so they are small plants. The flowers measure about 2 centimeters, and can be of different colors: pink, red, yellow or white. Its life is short, only a few months, but it must be kept in mind that grows well from seed if sown in late winter.
Impatiens walleriana
Image – Flickr/Mauricio Mercadante
The impatiens walleriana It is a perennial grass species native to Africa. It measures between 20 and 50 centimeters, and develops green leaves. Its flowers bloom in spring-summer and can be orange, red, purple or white.. It is popularly known as housejoy, balm, miramelindo or valerian impatiens. But either way, it’s definitely a plant that will look stunning on sunny balconies and patios.
Impatiens ‘Velvetea’
Image – Flickr/Maja Dumat
Impatiens ‘Velvetea’ is a beautiful annual herb. It is a cultivar of Impatiens morsei, this means that it is not found in the wild. It reaches 30 centimeters in height, maximum 40. What strikes the most are its leaves: dark green with a pink central vein. The flowers are small, white.
What is your opinion on these types of joy plants that we have shown you?