Impatiens rescue

[lblanchard]

It really feels like autumn now, with temperatures in the low 50s and a driving rain. I brought in the Nopalxochia last night, knocking off a little bit in the process, so I stuck the little bit in some vermiculite and am hoping for the best.

This afternoon I scampered out and plucked the last blooming bit of the impatiens I started from seed in the spring. The seeds were disappointing -- very expensive, a Thompson & Morgan import, and with the weakest germination I've ever had from impatiens. The blooms always looked a bit anemic, too, never showing the intense double coloration in the photo (below). And a number of them were malformed or discolored. This one isn't too bad.

Of the four viable plants I got, two died shortly after being set out. Another was totally engulfed in a tsunami of coleus that I had planted behind it. This one had only the one stem remaining. Still, it's a pretty thing in a subdued sort of a way, and I imagine that if I had treated it better it might have looked better.

The flower is bigger than the one on the Aunties' Rose, that's for sure.