These are the envoy cherry star, white & salmon Blitz, and accent red star imps...

{{gwi:998193}}

{{gwi:998194}}

{{gwi:998195}}

{{gwi:998196}}

New Guineas:
{{gwi:998197}}

{{gwi:978}}

{{gwi:979}}

{{gwi:998198}}

{{gwi:980}}

so far so good, I think!

Here we go: new pics! 3-11-08

Pretty soon I'll be a transplanting fool!

New Guineas:
{{gwi:984}}

Those are just gorgeous. This is the first year I've tried starting impatiens from seed. I have an unknown mix I got in a trade. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Booberry85 - I recognize your name in the tomato gardening. I hope all is well with your Toms. Good luck with your imps - keep us posted!

Ok, new pics! I STARTED transplanting my imps - I did 672 plants then ran out of inserts (I had to go to the 48 cell inserts due to space, I hope this is not a mistake). I transplanted 480 white Blitz 3000. And started the salmon - 192 plants. Did head of to the wholesale place and picked up new 48 cell inserts!

New pics:

Hard for me to tell if they're growing a lot or not. It should be said that I got 99% germination on the whites - don't know about the salmon yet. So I got some great seeds.

Thanks!

Wow, beautiful stretch of impatiens. I planted two this week--doubles, which were available in our nursery. They look like tiny roses. Hope they are as prolific as the singles. Sure are pretty!

Ok, I've officially transplanted approximately 1000 impatiens. I have about 750 more to transplant. Tough doing them after work or between activities on the weekends. I have the 100 new guineas left to do also. THey dried out on me one day... just can't keep up! My browallia (SP) is looking good - but SMALL... I hope they start 'kicking it up' soon... but we'll see. My TRUE issue is I'm running out of SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACE! Never have enough! :)

Hope everyone is doing well and planting/transplanting away!

As for the doubles, I have not found them to bloom as prolific as the singles. I've not had luck with growing them from seed either (but I haven't done so in 10, OH ALRIGHT, 15 years) I have not found them to grow as full either... That being said, they have a TON of different doubles out there now - Carousel, Circus, Fanciful (reportedly grows 12"+ tall), Tutu, and victorian rose (one specific variety)And these are the ones I know of - which isn't much. I think I did Circus from seed and got about 20% germ AND they were never *really* pretty plants - but again, it was a zillion years ago! Good luck with your doubles - do you have them planted in a bed or pot? Do you know which variety they are? They do have a beautiful flower.

Ok, got to the 100 new guinea imps last night - transplanted the best 72 - looking good...

Also transplanted another 100 cherry star envoy imps...


The ones I haven't transplanted yet... gotta hop to it!

THAT is amazing how much transplanting you are doing! Doesn't your back complain? And if it did you'd tell it to be quiet, this is all worth it!?

The bundles of imps on your fence, are you using those dark green bags to do that, or is that with pots? If bags, do you plant one plant per hole?

It's all breathtaking, by the way. I love impatiens too.

~kioni~

I see your other post about the new guinea imps in bags, so that question's been answered. Thanks!

All of the pictures are stunning. I love Impatience, had no luck last year starting from seed. I started again this year only a week ago. Any advice with help from seed will be greatly appreciated.

Kioni, so your making the rounds and breaking away from begonias! Good to hear from you here... I don't know if I ever got a real answer, but I'm going to go for it and see what happens. I trashed most of the bags last year - but kept a few in good shape and bought another 25, so I'll use up the new ones and use the new guineas on a bag or two see what happens. Kioni, my old fence couldn't take a pot, so I thought I'd go with the light plastic bags and they worked great for what I wanted them for! Actually better than I think a pot would look. Light weight and beautiful - can't complain with any of it. I just started putting them in the bags Sunday... Again, good to hear from you Kioni.

Wally 2007 (are you a RS fan? :)), advice... lights... do you have lights? I never had any luck until I could control the germination temperature (and that meant for me, not using a window). Impatiens don't like to have their seed covered. Like to germinate (to me) in a cooler 70 degrees (Unless your talking new guineas, I think they're closer to 80 degrees). Like to be moist not damp. I'm definitely not a pro - but Boxcar - who I think was above - shoot he was another post, but he knows his stuff and seems to have it to a science - much more than me... But that would be my advice. Lights... What did you have trouble with specifically? I found a big difference between germination rates between new guineas, regular imps and double imps... if that helps ya.

Let me know.

Thanks!

Finally my imps seem to be moving a long a little bit better. I have light issues now - later in the season it'll be lighter in the room and I'll have less trouble... But here's the latest picture!

{{gwi:430474}}

{{gwi:7457}}

Again, working on starting the 'bags'... :)

Hi tom8olvr,
I never saw anything like this ! Absolutely Beautiful !!!
Can I ask, How can I get my impatiens to grow like yours ? Should I water with 20-20-20 every watering ? I bought impatiens "plugs" about 600 of them and would love to do just what you did along our fence!
Thanks

Finally getting back here... And looking at the pictures, They've done a little more growing since!
THis is the new guineas (I'm very happy with them because I really thought they'd be a dud!)
{{gwi:430485}}

{{gwi:430484}}

I bought 100 seed and I transplanted 72 of the best plants... so I'm really happy with that (for me, not too shabby!)

I am in the process of 'making' the bags (that hang on the fence). I'm really dreading it - they're a pain to put into the bags - I've started, but Ugh ugh ugh! I keep telling myself they're worth it, they're worth it! :) I'm growing a dwarf variety for the bags (they grew out of the bags after a time). So we'll see how they do!

Hey thanks, jcnetti. I use a 10-10-10 granular fertilizer in the early season... I kinda scratch it around while I'm weeding... Once the flowers grow together they form a canopy and I don't need to weed (the flowers smother them) and I can't use the granular fert. So then I'll miracle grow them may be 3-4 times, all season - but that's it.

Here's another picture of the imps last year:

{{gwi:710}}

The one thing I have to say, jcnetti is that I grow the larger flowering imps. I'm not sure what variety your growing... I grew the Encore/Envoy and Tempo last year. This year I'm growing the Blitz and Envoy. They are larger flowering AND they grow taller (instead of 10" they reportedly grow to 20" - mine grew over 24"). What variety of plugs did you buy?

Update for this year -

NG Imps looking good:
{{gwi:430491}}

Picture of imps in the ground a few weeks (actually bigger now - and white blitz are blooming)
{{gwi:430493}}

Whooooa , buddy! That is awesome, I have been afraid for years to try imps because everyone says they are too fussy! You pics have made a believer out of me!

The Garden Pooter!

Gee, I forgot about this post! I wanted to document my progress...

I appear to be behind the impatien growers who purchase their impatiens. There's a place downtown where I live and their imps are the same height but theirs appear to already have a canopy whereas mine seem to just starting to grow together.

My impatien bags: I decided to grow something smaller because the envoy seemd to grow out of the bag (getting too big) before the end of the summer - but these don't seem to be doing very well... live and learn. We'll see what happens with them. They're in the 1st picture below... on the fence... they don't look very well at all!

Latest pictures:

This is a new bed (and I'm happy the way it's coming along!)

I'm extremely happy with my New Guinea impatiens - they aren't QUITE the color they advertised, BUT I'm very happy with the way they are coming in - if I could just keep the neighbor dog out of the flower bed!
{{gwi:430491}}

This is a New Guinea that I bought that I'm really happy with - it's a salmon flower with 'varigated leaves'... I'm really liking it!

I am having issues with weeds this year - last year was my 1st gardening season in the house/yard so this is year #2 and may be the weed seeds got turned up last year and are sprouting this year - but weeds gallore... also I've had hundreds of impatien weeds - I'm letting them go to see what color they show up as... just Intrigued. but does take longer to weed when I'm trying to go AROUND the impatien weeds!!!

I do have to say that I THINK I'm doing well, considering the last week or two we've had storms daily with high winds and HAIL!!! YES, HAIL! I'm surprised these little guys are doing as well as they are!

So there's the latest.

Thanks!

Wow Great!!! I tried impatiens for the first time this year and they were slightly finicky in any location that had more than a couple hours of sun. We've had some good rains and cooler weather and now it looks like a tropical jungle out there!

Ok - pics from 7/7:

new bed:

the bed and bags are FINALLY looking good:

bed along the retaining wall is VERY slow this year:
{{gwi:998222}}

This is a cherry star - but I'm so impressed by this particular bloom... it looks like it's tie dye to me... I wish they were all like this!

{{gwi:17413}}

Oh, here's a decent picture of a new guinea. they aren't HUGE but they're covered with blooms (the ones that aren't being dug up by SOMETHING)...

Ok, quick update:

The Blitz 3000 imps (white and salmon) are really taking off. They're forming
a nice canopy that keeps me from having to weed so darn much. The Envoy (from stokes - 'cherry star') is poking a long - not
nearly as vigorous. I hope they fill in and end up forming
a hedge like they did last year.

Picture from this morning:

The NG imps in one section are getting DESTROYED by
SOMETHING. Little sneaky Whatevers... Chipmunks,
squirrels and skunks are all in the area...

There's a daffodil bulb sitting on the top - I can't
imagine they'd be after THAT...

This is the rest of the bed, I'm really very happy with them,
considering I started them from seed... I'm pleasantly surprised!

OK, 7/30 update:
New Guineas:

{{gwi:25947}}
I'm thrilled with these - they really took off and are really
starting to look fabulous (when the skunk is not digging in
the bed!).
Went with a smaller type imp for the bags:
{{gwi:17411}}
I think it was a good choice.

{{gwi:17387}}

{{gwi:17381}}
{{gwi:17385}}

{{gwi:17415}}

This is the new bed I put in this year:
{{gwi:17375}}
{{gwi:17383}}
{{gwi:17377}}

{{gwi:17379}}
{{gwi:17384}}