Genus: Impatiens — touch-me-not

The flowers of Impatiens are quite interesting to study. There are 3 sepals. The lower one looks like a petal and forms a conical tube at the back of the flower, ending in a nectar-containing spur. The 2 upper sepals are smaller but still somewhat petal-like. There are 5 petals—an upper one that is concave and projected upward or forward, and 2 pairs of lower ones. One pair of the lower petals is fused together into a single unit on each side of the flower.

Family

Balsaminaceae (touch-me-not family)

This genus’s species in New England

• Impatiens capensis
• Impatiens glandulifera
• Impatiens pallida

Visit this genus in the Dichotomous Key

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