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Monsoon annuals
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Balsam is ideal for borders and mixed beddings
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FLORAL CARPET Balsam comes in vivid hues
Impatiens balasamina is an old favourite and perhaps the most popular of our monsoon annuals. Balsam is a native of India, China and Malaysia. It is very easily grown and found in every garden during the rainy season. Belonging to the family Balsaminaceae, these are sparsely branched plants with slightly hardy with alternate narrowly elliptic, deeply toothed pale green leaves. They have brittle almost transparent, succulent stems with reddish joints. As the flowers have very small stems they are not suited for cuttings.
The blooms are of many beautiful colours and delicate shades, from white, pink, rose, crimson, violet to purple 2.5 to 5 cms long borne on leaf axils. The flowers are cup-shaped, hooded, spurred asymmetrical and 5 petalled borne singly or in racemes produced close to the stems. They are irregular, double or single, and are followed by explosive seed capsules.
. Seeds are sown at any time from the beginning of the rains. They should be grown in open sunny situations. Seeds are sown in seed pans and transplanted when the second leaves have made a little growth. Set the plants in good fertile soil--lime free loamy compost. When the side branches appear, pinch off some and also the centre shoot. Those left will grow strong. The plants make very quick growth and flower quickly.
In Kerala Balsam blooms have an important place in decorating the floral carpets during the Onam festival. An excellent houseplant of neat compact habit it is also used as borders or mixed beddings.
CHITRA RADHAKRISHNAN
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