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Impatiens occidentalis

Common name:		Family:	Balsaminaceae
Author:	Rydb.	Botanical references:	60
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	Regular ingestion of large quantities of these plants can be dangerous due to their high mineral content[172]. This report, which seems nonsensical, might refer to calcium oxalate. This mineral is found in I. capensis and so is probably also in other members of the genus. It can be harmful raw but is destroyed by thoroughly cooking or drying the plant[K]. People with a tendency to rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones and hyperacidity should take especial caution if including this plant in their diet[238].
Range:	Western N. America.
Habitat:	Moist woods[60].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	I. noli-tangere[B,C,CAL,DUTCH,E,G,H,HORTIPLEX,L,Mh,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Groot Springzaad [D], Jewelweed [E], Touch-me-not [H,MS], Touch-me-not Balsam [L], Western Touch-me-not [B], Western Touchmenot [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	occidentalis = of the west
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Geraniales. Touch-me-not family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Us

Physical Characteristics

Annual. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge.

Edible Uses

Leaves Seed.

Young shoots - cooked in one change of water[172]. See the notes above on toxicity.
Seed - raw or cooked[172]. They are tedious to collect in quantity[172], mainly because of their exploding seed capsules which scatter the ripe seed at the slightest touch[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antidote Parasiticide Stings Warts.

Antidote, parasiticide. Used in the treatment of warts, ringworm, nettle stings, poison ivy rash etc[172].

Other Uses

Dye Fungicide Hair.

A yellow dye is obtained from the plant[172]. No more details are given.
Used as a hair rinse for itchy scalps[172]. No more details are given.
A fungicide is obtained from the plant[172]. No more details are given, but it is likely to be the juice of the plant that is used.

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any reasonably good soil[1]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers a moist well-drained humus rich soil in a cool site[200].
This plant has seed capsules that spring open forcibly as the seed ripens to eject the seed a considerable distance. The capsules are sensitive to touch even before the seed is ripe, making seed collection difficult but fun[K].
This species is probably part of I. noli-tangere[60].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Impatiens noli-tangere (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A& M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Balsaminaceae.

To be included in the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[172] Schofield. J. J. Discovering Wild Plants - Alaska, W. Canada and the Northwest.
A nice guide to some useful plants in that area.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Impatiens+occidentalis
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