Wildflowers of the United States
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Pale Touch-me-not, Pale Snapweed - Impatiens pallida


Family: Balsaminaceae – Touch-me-not family Genus Common Name: Touch-me-not Native Status: Native
Impatiens pallida - Pale Touch-me-not, Pale Snapweed. Of the 10 Impatiens species found wild in the United States, 5 are native. This species, I. pallida is one of those natives, and it is found in 33 of our states. It is protected as a plant of Special Concern in Maine.

Pale Touch-me-not grows to 5 feet tall in moist areas, usually in dense colonies.
Distribution of Impatiens pallida in the United States and Canada:
USDA Plants Distribution Map
Blue=Native; Grey=Introduced

Map from USDA Plants Database:
USDA, NRCS. 2009. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 08 Sep 2010). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

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Site: Haywood County, NC Date: 2010-July-12Photographer: Gerald C. Williamson
Pale Touch-me-not has a yellow blossom with a single petal as a hood, and two lateral petals with reddish-brown spots. It hangs from a slender pedicel that is around 2 inches long.
Impatiens pallida
Site: Haywood County, NC Date: 2010-July-12Photographer: Gerald C Williamson
Nikon D60
Tamron SP 90MM f/2.8 AF Macro
The reddish-brown-spotted yellow sepal of Impatiens pallida is sac-shaped and narrows to a spur which turns down at a 90-degree angle. Compare this with the 180-degree turn of the spur on Impatiens capensis.
Click on the photo for a larger image
Impatiens pallida
Site: Haywood County, NC Date: 2010-July-12Photographer: Gerald C Williamson
Nikon D60
Tamron SP 90MM f/2.8 AF Macro
Impatiens pallida has alternating leaves which are ovate and serrated. The blossoms hang from the leaf axils on long pedicels.
Click on the photo for a larger image
Impatiens pallida

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All content except USDA Plants Database map Copyright Gerald C. Williamson 2010
Photographs Copyrighted by the named photographer


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