Impatiens are a long-time favorite for adding splashes of color to shady beds. Blooming from spring until frost, impatiens can fill in the gaps between bloom times of shade perennials. Growing in little mounds no larger than one foot (31 cm.) tall and two feet (61 cm.) wide, impatiens can be tucked into bare areas in the shade garden. Their compact habit also makes them great for shady bedding plants or borders.
Companion Planting with Impatiens
Before getting into what to plant with impatiens, let me tell you what impatiens bring to the table as companion plants. Impatiens attract beneficial insects. As stated above, they add long-lasting, vibrant color to dark shady areas, and make excellent borders. Impatiens’ fleshy, succulent-like stems store water and make them drought resistant, so they do not compete with other plants for water and can be used in dry shade beds. As companion plants, the dense foliage of impatiens can keep the soil moist and cool for its companions.
Companion Plants for Impatiens
An old-fashioned favorite in the south is pairing impatiens with azaleas. Other shrub companion plants for impatiens are:
- Rhododendrons
- Holly
- Boxwood
- Yews
- Fothergilla
- Sweetspire
- Camellia
- Hydrangea
- Daphne
- Kerria
- Japanese pieris
- Mountain laurel
- Summersweet
- Witch hazel
- Spikenard
Older landscapes tend to just have yews or boxwoods planted in shady areas around the house. While it’s nice to have that evergreen effect throughout the winter, these beds can be quite boring in the summer when all the others are full of blooms. Impatiens can border these monotonous evergreen beds, adding the pop of color they need. In shade containers or flower borders, these make lovely companion plants for impatiens:
When companion planting with impatiens, their bright pink, red, orange, and white flowers beautifully add contrast to plants with dark or yellow foliage. Some perennial impatiens companions with dark foliage are ajuga, coral bells, and cimicifuga. A few yellow foliage perennials that nicely contrast impatiens include Aureola Japanese forest grass and citronella heuchera. Additional companion plants for impatiens are:
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Velvetea Impatiens Care: Tips For Growing Velvet Love ImpatiensImpatiens are a staple annual flower for many gardeners. These flowers do well in partial shade and come in a variety of colors. If you enjoy regular impatiens, give the Velvet Love impatiens variety a try. To learn more, click the following article.
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Cutting Back Impatiens: Learn About Pruning Impatiens PlantsImpatiens are perfect for filling in those shady areas of beds and the yard where other plants just don’t thrive. They add color and cheer, but impatiens can also become leggy, showing off more stems that blooms. Learn how to cut back impatiens plants in this article.
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Impatiens Water Needs – Learn How To Water Impatiens PlantsBecause of their preference to grow in partial, afternoon, and/or filtered shade, many impatiens’ water needs are different from sun-loving plants. Learn how to water impatiens correctly in this article. Click here for more information.
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Houseplant Impatiens: How To Keep Indoor Impatiens PlantsReadily available in garden centers and at plant nurseries, impatiens are easy to find flowering plants thrive in shady locations. Due to this, impatiens are also excellent candidates for container culture indoors throughout the winter. Click here to learn more.
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Impatiens Won't Bloom: Reasons For No Flowers On Impatiens PlantImpatiens plants are great bedding and container flowers that ought to bloom reliably all summer long. That?s why it can be especially frustrating if your plants stop blooming or never even start. Learn more about why impatiens won?t bloom in this article.
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Seed Propagating New Guinea Impatiens – Can You Grow New Guinea Impatiens From SeedsOne annual favorite that can be quite pricey because of its bright flowers and variegated foliage is New Guinea impatiens. No doubt many of us have considered growing these higher-priced plants by seed. Can you grow New Guinea impatiens from seed? Find out here.
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What Are Sunpatiens: How To Plant Sunpatiens In Garden BedsSunpatiens is a relatively new impatiens hybrid that thrives in full sun and hot, humid weather, greatly expanding the area in which gardeners can spread impatiens color. Click here for information on how to plant sunpatiens and sunpatiens plant care.
