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Himalayan balsam
Himalayan balsam
Impatiens glandulifera
Plantae
COMMON

Stats

Lifespan
Annual
Size
Large
Diet
Photosynthetic
Biome
Temperate wetland
Range
Western Himalayas
Movement
Sessile
Breeding
Seeds
Defense
Toxins
Status
Common

About

Himalayan balsam is a towering annual that can reach 2.5 m (8 ft) — the tallest annual plant in the UK. Its ripe seed pods explode at the slightest touch, flinging seeds up to 7 m away.

Life cycle

  1. 1.
    seed
    A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
  2. 2.
    sprout
    A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
  3. 3.
    sapling
    A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
  4. 4.
    mature
    Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
Order
Ericales
Family
Balsaminaceae
Genus
Impatiens
Species
Impatiens glandulifera