In the last couple of years, our Busy Lizzies have been devastated by disease so this year they will – and should be – hard to find in garden centres and largely unavailable by mail order. Frankly, there’s no point growing them.
But what to grow instead? Well, how about a different kind of Impatiens?
New Guinea impatiens have long been grown as indoor plants, and with their attractive foliage and large, bold and bright flowers have been much appreciated as pot plants. Developed from I. hawkeri, which grows wild in from Papua New Guinea, recent developments have adapted them to being grown outside in summer containers and even in sunny summer borders.
It is the African species, I. walleriana, the species from which the familiar Accent, Super Elfin and other busy lizzies have been developed, that suffers from the devastating downy mildew which has made growing busy lizzies pointless.
But the four colours of the Sun Harmony Series of New Guinea impatiens were outstanding last summer; their vigorous growth, tolerance of both full sun and partial shade, and their long flowering period really made them stand out. And, of course, no mildew.
Editor-in-Chief of the RHS Encyclopedia of Perennials; writer for a wide range of newspapers and magazines including The Garden and The Plantsman; member of the RHS Herbaceous Plant Committee and Floral Trials Committee; author of many books on plants and gardens.
Source: RHS My Garden – Impatiens ‘Sun Harmony’: Mildew Resistant Sun Lover – Graham Rice
