Annual flowers are a wonderful addition to your garden. They bring a lot of color and interest. According to the USDA, gardening and lawn care ring up about $47.8 billion in spending in the United States. Following these tips for planting and caring for disease-resistant impatiens will protect your garden investment.

Disease-Resistant Impatiens

Impatiens are popular annual flowers. They are relatively easy to grow, self-seed, and can even grow in the shade. Over the last decade, downy mildew disease has infected most of the impatiens on the east coast. However, disease-resistant impatiens that were developed around 2014 are resistant to downy mildew disease. With the new genetics, they’re now a great, successful plant! You’ll see results and be happy with your garden. Here are a few tips for planting disease-free impatiens.

• Choose the Right Plant: The first tip for success with disease-resistant impatiens is to make sure you choose a variety that clearly states it is of the disease-resistant variety. We use the beacon impatient variety.
• Sun-Shade Planting: Impatiens are not big fans of direct sunlight. They prefer a sun-shade mix or full shade. Some varieties will do well under direct sun, however, most prefer partial sun to partial shade mix.
• Impatiens Like Moist Soil: Impatiens thrive in moist, well-draining soil. They enjoy a humus mix soil that stays moist (not wet). You should water regularly, but not overwater.
• Give Them Room to Grow: Impatiens are meant to grow in mounds. If you plant them too closely, they will grow upwards and become leggy. Properly space your impatiens about 8-12 inches apart.
• Fertilize: A slow-release fertilizer will ensure your impatiens get the nutrients they need to create their beautiful showy blooms. Ideally, you should add fertilizer to the soil before transplanting it.

Annual Flowers or Perennials?

Impatiens are technically perennials when grown in warmer climates. They can return each year in the proper conditions. However, these mighty garden bed flowers are treated as annuals in most of the United States.

The disease-resistant impatiens are a great selection for any gardener that wants to enjoy the beauty of the blooms from spring through summer without worrying about losing their plants to disease. You can put the threat of downy mildew out of your mind! Order your disease-resistant impatiens from us at Schwartz Greenhouse today.