Impatiens balsamina L.

First published in Sp. Pl.: 938 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is W. & S. India, Sri Lanka. It is an annual and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome. It is used to treat unspecified medicinal disorders, has environmental uses, as a poison and a medicine and for food.

Descriptions

Bernal, R., G. Galeano, A. Rodríguez, H. Sarmiento y M. Gutiérrez. 2017. Nombres Comunes de las Plantas de Colombia. http://www.biovirtual.unal.edu.co/nombrescomunes/

Vernacular
caracucha, caracucho, caracucho blanco, caracuchos, primavera
[UNAL]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: low confidence
[AERP]

Balsaminaceae, C. Grey-Wilson. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1993

Morphology General Habit
Annual herb to 60 cm. tall, often less; stem ± erect, simple or sparsely branched, glabrous or pubescent when young.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves spirally arranged, the lowermost occasionally opposite; petiole 2–13 mm. long; lamina narrowly lanceolate to narrow-elliptic or oblanceolate, 2.7–9 cm. long, 1.1–2.6 cm. broad, the base cuneate, the apex acute, glabrous or finely pubescent above and/or beneath; lateral veins 4–7 pairs; margin serrate-dentate with several dark ± sessile glands towards the base of the lamina.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers epedunculate, solitary or in fascicles of 2–3, white or pink.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts
Bracts linear-lanceolate, ± 2 mm. long, inconspicuous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Pedicel
Pedicels 1–1.6 cm. long, slender, glabrous or pubescent, spreading in flower but becoming pendent in fruit.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Lower sepal deeply navicular, 1.3–1.9 cm. long, 0.4–0.8 cm. deep, abruptly constricted into a 1.3–2.4 cm. long filiform spur, incurved in the distal half, glabrous or finely pubescent throughout or or in part. Lateral sepals 2, narrowly ovate-lanceolate, 2–3 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Dorsal petal 1–1.4 cm. long, 0.7–1.1 cm. broad, cucullate, apically produced into a 2–4 mm. long pointed appendage. Lateral united petals 2.3–3.5 cm. long; upper petal of each pair about one-third the size of the lower, oblong, 9–10 mm. long, 7–9 mm. broad; lower petal of each pair suborbicular, 18–27 mm. long, 18–25 mm. broad, unevenly bilobed.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary
Ovary densely pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit broadly-fusiform, 12–20 mm. long, 6–8 mm. broad, densely pubescent.
Habitat
Usually growing near habitation, along road and tracksides, or along ditches, or on or near cultivated land, occasionally naturalised in secondary forest or scrubland.
Distribution
K4 T1 a native of tropical Asia but widely naturalised in the tropics and subtropicsin Africa in Sierra Leone, Ghana, Cameroun, S. Tomé, Principé, Zaire to Malawi and Mozambique
[FTEA]

Distribution
Biogeografic region: Amazonia, Andean, Caribbean. Elevation range: 50–2100 m a.s.l. Cultivated in Colombia. Colombian departments: Antioquia, Bogotá DC, Boyacá, Caldas, Caquetá, Cauca, Cesar, Córdoba, Cundinamarca, Huila, Meta, Nariño, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Quindío, Risaralda, Santander, Sucre, Tolima, Valle del Cauca.
Habit
Herb.
Ecology
Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: forest and woodland, savanna, shrubland, native grassland, artificial - terrestrial.
[UPFC]

The Useful Plants of Boyacá project

Distribution
Cultivated in Colombia.
Morphology General Habit
Herb.
Ecology
Alt. 50 - 2100 m.
[UPB]

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution
Cultivada en Colombia; Alt. 50 - 2100 m.; Amazonia, Andes, Llanura del Caribe.
Morphology General Habit
Hierba
[CPLC]

Uses

Use Environmental
Environmental uses.
Use Gene Sources
Used as gene sources.
Use Food
Used for food.
Use Materials
Used as material.
Use Medicines
Medical uses.
Use Poisons
Poisons.
[UPFC]

Use Materials
Materials (State of the World's Plants 2016).
Use Medicines Unspecified Medicinal Disorders
Medicinal (Instituto Humboldt 2014).
Use Materials Unspecified Materials Chemicals
Materials (State of the World's Plants 2016).
[UPB]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images
  • Universidad Nacional de Colombia

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • Useful Plants of Boyacá Project

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0