Is Impatiens deer resistant?
Impatiens walleriana
Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
Rating source: Rutgers NJAES E271
About Impatiens
Succulent and defenceless, one of the first annuals stripped. For deer-prone shade use ferns, hellebore or lungwort rather than another annual.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 6 to 6.5
- Drainage
- Consistently moist
- Water
- High
- Fertility
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 10 to 14 in apart
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Maintenance
- Moderate
Tolerances and uses
- Drought
- None
- Salt
- Low
- Pollinators
- Low
- Containers
What to plant it with
Keep apart from
- Russian Sage
Full sun and drought against wet shade. Nothing about these two overlaps.
Deer-resistant alternatives to Impatiens
Same plant type, hardy in the same zones, but rated better on the Rutgers scale. If Impatiens keeps getting eaten, these go in the same spot.
Similar to Impatiens
Other annuals with the same deer rating.
- Annual GeraniumPelargonium x hortorumGrown as an annual, any zoneOccasionally damaged
- ColeusColeus sp.Grown as an annual, any zoneOccasionally damaged
- CosmosCosmos sp.Grown as an annual, any zoneOccasionally damaged
- DahliaDahlia sp.Grown as an annual, any zoneOccasionally damaged
- Garden BalsamImpatiens balsaminaGrown as an annual, any zoneOccasionally damaged
- Garden PetuniaPetunia sp.Grown as an annual, any zoneOccasionally damaged
Protecting Impatiens
Whether this survives comes down to local pressure, so it is worth knowing the options before it gets browsed rather than after.
- How tall a deer fence needs to beEight feet, and six is the most common expensive mistake in deer fencing.
- Repellent that actually worksThe egg-based recipe that reproduces the active ingredient in the commercial sprays that win university trials.
- Fencing a raised bedA deer jumps from ground level, so measure the barrier from the ground and not from the top of the bed.
- Check it is actually deerDeer tear and leave a ragged stub. A clean 45-degree cut is rabbits, and slug holes get blamed on deer constantly.
Where Impatiens grows
Hardy across most of these 51 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Florida
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
- Hawaii
Browse from here
Every list Impatiens belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Impatiens
- Is Impatiens deer resistant?
- Impatiens (Impatiens walleriana) is rated Occasionally Severely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Browsed where deer pressure is high. Protect it.
- What hardiness zones does Impatiens grow in?
- Impatiens is hardy in USDA zones 2 to 11. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat.
- Does Impatiens grow in shade?
- Yes. Impatiens tolerates full shade to part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
- How big does Impatiens get?
- Mature height is roughly 6–24 in. Growth rate is fast.
- When does Impatiens bloom?
- Impatiens flowers from May–October.