Impatiens balsamina L., Balsaminaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Threat only at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  Evaluate, score: 5 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

Chamorro: kamantigi

Chuukese: pee cca, pee-cha

English: balsam, garden balsam, impatiens, rose balsam, spotted snapweed, touch-me-not

French: balsamine des jardins, impatience

Palauan: hosengka

Samoan: patiale

Spanish: balsamina, chachupina, chico, madama

Tongan: polosomo

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Herb, perennial or annual, to 60 cm high (24 in) with weak, succulent stems.  Leaves simple, alternate, blade narrowly elliptic to ovate or lanceolate, 6-15 cm long (2 1/2 - 6 in) with toothed margins and an attenuate base.   Flowers continuously through the year; flowers one to three, borne in sessile axillary clusters, each flower with a narrow, curved, nectar-filled spur 1.5-2.5 cm long (5/8-1 in).   Corolla two-lipped, with five unequal, free, white, pink, red, or purple, obcordate petals, the lower two the largest, 2.5-3.5 cm long (1 1 3/4 in).  Fruit a fuzzy ovoid capsule 1.5-2 cm long (5/8 - 3/4 in), opening explosively to eject the seeds."  (Whistler, 2000).

"Succulent, watery herbs; leaves serrate, petiole usually glandular at base; flowers showy, white, pink, red or purple; petals 3, the lateral ones bifid; capsules loculicidal"  (Stone, 1970; p. 398).

Habitat/ecology:  A common escape from cultivation, naturalizing in disturbed areas.  In Niue, "grows semi-adventively in several small waste places in most or all of the villages" (Sykes, 1970; p. 48). In Tonga, "frequent about dwellings and cemeteries. Occasional as an escape in waste areas" (Yuncker, 1959; pp. 176-177).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  India and southeastern Asia, now widespread in cultivation.

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (US) Northern Mariana Islands	Rota Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Isabela Group	Volcan Sierra Negra	introduced invasive cultivated	Charles Darwin Research Station (2005)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Charles Darwin Research Station (2005)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Santa Cruz Group	Santa Cruz Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Charles Darwin Research Station (2005)
Federated States of Micronesia Chuuk Islands	Puluwat (Pwonowót) Atoll	introduced cultivated	Manner, H. I./Mallon, E. (1989) (p. 50) Voucher cited: Manner & Mallon 231 (GUAM)
Federated States of Micronesia Chuuk Islands	Weno (Moen) Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Federated States of Micronesia Kosrae Island	Kosrae Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Federated States of Micronesia Kosrae Island	Kosrae Island	introduced cultivated	Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim (2005) (p. 12)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei Islands	Pohnpei Island	introduced	Glassman, S. F. (1952) (p. 57)
Fiji Fiji Islands	Ovalau Island	introduced cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1985) (p. 630) Vouchers cited: Smith 7478, Smith 7479
Fiji Fiji Islands	Viti Levu Island	introduced cultivated	Smith, Albert C. (1985) (p. 630) Vouchers cited: DA 16768, DA 12123, DA 12091
French Polynesia Society Islands	Raiatea (Havai) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 47) Voucher cited: Moore 428 Persisting from cultivation.
French Polynesia Society Islands	Tahiti Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Welsh, S. L. (1998) (p. 47) Voucher cited: Grant 1300 Persisting from cultivation.
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced cultivated	Stone, Benjamin C. (1970) (p. 398) Voucher cited: Stone 4664 (GUAM)
Guam Guam Island	Guam Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kili (Kõle) Atoll	introduced cultivated	Vander Velde, Nancy/Vander Velde, Brian (2006) (p. 6) "Rare; one plant observed in private garden".
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kwajalein (Kuwajleen) Atoll	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Marshall Islands Ralik Chain	Kwajalein (Kuwajleen) Atoll	introduced cultivated	Whistler, W. A./Steele, O. (1999) (p. 99)
Marshall Islands Ratak Chain	Majuro (Mãjro) Atoll	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Marshall Islands Ratak Chain	Majuro (Mãjro) Atoll	introduced cultivated	Vander Velde, Nancy (2003) (p. 73)
Nauru Nauru Island	Nauru Island	introduced cultivated	Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. (1994) (p. 103) Voucher cited: Thaman & Manner 117 (SUVA)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive	Tassin, Jacques (2005)
New Caledonia New Caledonia Archipelago	Île Grande Terre	introduced invasive cultivated	MacKee, H. S. (1994) (p. 20) Voucher cited: Baumann 6794 Spontané
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced	Sykes, W. R. (1970) (p. 48) Voucher cited: CHR 168870
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced cultivated	Yuncker, T. G. (1943) (p. 79)
Niue Niue	Niue Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara M./Newfield, Melanie/Bull, Cate (2004) (p. 43) Impatiens sp.
Palau Palau (main island group)	Babeldaob Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar (2003) (p. 101)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	introduced	Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce (1979) (p. 150)
Palau Palau (main island group)	Koror Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar (2003) (p. 97)
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands	Solomon Islands	introduced invasive cultivated	Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. (1988) (p. 83)
Tonga Tongatapu Group	‘Eua Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2001) (p. 60)
Tonga Tongatapu Group	Tongatapu Island	introduced cultivated	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2001) (p. 53)
Tonga Vava‘u Group	Vava‘u Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Space, James C./Flynn, Tim (2001) (p. 66)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Mexico Mexico	Mexico (United Mexican States)		Holm, Leroy/Pancho, Juan V./Herberger, James P./Plucknett, Donald L. (1979) (p. 190)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 350) Casual adventive.
Vietnam Vietnam	Vietnam (Socialist Republic of)		Holm, Leroy/Pancho, Juan V./Herberger, James P./Plucknett, Donald L. (1979) (p. 190)

Indian Ocean
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Indian Ocean offshore islands) Christmas Island Group	Christmas Island	introduced cultivated	Swarbrick, J. T. (1997) (p. 116)
British Indian Ocean Territory Chagos Archipelago	Diego Garcia Island	introduced	Stoddart, D. R./Taylor, J. D., eds. (1971) (p. 153) "Recorded by Willis and Gardiner (1931)".

Additional information:  Additional online information about Impatiens balsamina is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Taxonomic information about Impatiens balsamina may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Charles Darwin Research Station. 2005. CDRS Herbarium records.

Fosberg, F. R./Otobed, D./Sachet, M.-H./Oliver, R. L./Powell, D. A./Canfield, J. E. 1980. Vascular plants of Palau with vernacular names. Department of Botany, The Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 43 pp.

Fosberg, F. R./Sachet, Marie-Hélène/Oliver, Royce. 1979. A geographical checklist of the Micronesian dicotyledonae. Micronesica 15:1-295.

Glassman, S. F. 1952. The flora of Ponape. Bishop Mus. Bull. 209: 1-152.

Hancock, I. R./Henderson, C. P. 1988. Flora of the Solomon Islands. Research Bulletin No. 7. Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, Honiara. 203 pp.

Holm, Leroy/Pancho, Juan V./Herberger, James P./Plucknett, Donald L. 1979. A geographical atlas of world weeds. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 391 pp.

Lorence, David H./Flynn, Tim. 2005. Checklist of the plants of Kosrae. Unpublished checklist. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Hawai‘i. 23 pp.

MacKee, H. S. 1994. Catalogue des plantes introduites et cultivées en Nouvelle-Calédonie. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 164 p.

Manner, H. I./Mallon, E. 1989. An Annotated list of the vascular plants of Pulawat Atoll. Micronesica 22:23-63.

Smith, Albert C. 1985. Flora Vitiensis nova: a new flora of Fiji. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, Kauai, Hawaii. Volume 3. 758 pp.

Space, James C./Flynn, Tim. 2001. Report to the Kingdom of Tonga on invasive plant species of environmental concern.  USDA Forest Service, Honolulu. 78 pp.

Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara M./Newfield, Melanie/Bull, Cate. 2004. Report to the Government of Niue and the United Nations Development Programme: Invasive plant species on Niue following Cyclone Heta. UNDP NIU/98/G31 - Niue Enabling Activity. 80 pp.

Space, James C./Waterhouse, Barbara/Miles, Joel E./Tiobech, Joseph/Rengulbai, Kashgar. 2003. Report to the Republic of Palau on invasive plant species of environmental concern. USDA Forest Service, Honolulu. 174 pp.

Stoddart, D. R./Taylor, J. D., eds. 1971. Geography and ecology of Diego Garcia Atoll, Chagos Archipelago. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 149. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. 237 pp.

Stone, Benjamin C. 1970. The flora of Guam. Micronesica 6:1-659.

Swarbrick, J. T. 1997. Environmental weeds and exotic plants on Christmas Island, Indian Ocean: a report to Parks Australia. 101 pp. plus appendix.

Swarbrick, John T. 1997. Weeds of the Pacific Islands. Technical paper no. 209. South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia. 124 pp.

Sykes, W. R. 1970. Contributions to the flora of Niue. New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research Bulletin 200, Wellington. 321 pp.

Tassin, Jacques. 2005. Jacques Tassin (IAC-CIRAD), personal communication.

Thaman, R. R./Fosberg, F. R./Manner, H. I./Hassall, D. C. 1994. The flora of Nauru. Smithsonian Institution, Washington. Atoll Research Bulletin 392:1-223.

U. S. Government. 2006. Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) (on-line resource).

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2007. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

Vander Velde, Nancy. 2003. The vascular plants of Majuro Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Smithsonian Institution, Atoll Research Bulletin No. 503:1-141.

Vander Velde, Nancy/Vander Velde, Brian. 2006. Plants of Kili Island, Marshall Islands. Unpublished checklist. 12 pp.

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Welsh, S. L. 1998. Flora Societensis: A summary revision of the flowering plants of the Society Islands. E.P.S. Inc., Orem, Utah. 420 pp.

Whistler, W. A. 1984. Annotated list of Samoan plant names. Economic Botany 38:464.489.

Whistler, W. A. 2000. Tropical ornamentals: a guide. Timber Press, Portland, Oregon. 542 pp.

Whistler, W. A./Steele, O. 1999. Botanical survey of the United States of America Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Islands. Prepared for Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education and the U. S. Army Environmental Center. 111 pp.

Yuncker, T. G. 1943. The flora of Niue Island. Bishop Mus. Bull. 178. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 126 pp.

Yuncker, T. G. 1959. Plants of Tonga. Bishop Museum Bull. 220. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 343 pp.