Himalayan balsam (Indian balsam) Impatiens glandulifera

Description

Himalayan balsam is an annual herbaceous plant with a carnose stem. The leaves are lanceolate and sharply serrated at the edges. The self-compatible flowers are up to 4 cm in size. The inflorescence is an erect raceme. The flowers are usually pink, but several colours, from dark red to white, have been found in Finland. The fruit is a pod-like capsule which easily bursts open at maturity and casts the seeds several metres over the surrounding area.

As the Finnish name “giant balsam” implies, individuals can be up to more than three metres tall but the plants are usually about 1.5 metres tall on average. Even small, less than 10 cm tall specimens flower and form seeds. The tallest plants usually grow in rich and humid habitats, where the Himalayan balsam is extremely competitive and displaces native vegetation. Himalayan balsam does not tolerate drought and grows poorly in barren habitats.

Himalayan balsam produces a large quantity of seeds, up to 4,000 in one individual. The seeds are cast up to seven metres away over the surrounding area. They do not float but sink to the bottom. Many stands have originated from garden waste transported outside gardens into the wild.

Himalayan balsam has no natural enemies in Finland.

Source: FinBIF species descriptions
Description text authors:

Terhi Ryttäri (SYKE) Editors of the Invasive Alien Species Portal - Updated 14 September 2016

CC BY 4.0

The map represents observations of this taxon, but it may not be used as a distribution map.

squares
Observations
  • Total squares
Checklist
FinBIF master checklist
Scientific name
Impatiens glandulifera
Author
Royle
Vernacular names
  • jättipalsami (Finnish)
  • jättebalsamin (Swedish)
  • Himalayan balsam (English)
Identifier
http://tun.fi/MX.39158
Taxon rank
species
Occurrence in Finland
Collected from Finland
Status in Finland
  • TNV - alien, new, resident
  • 3 - spreading in the wild; completely of cultivated origin
This species is invasive
EstablishmentEstablished
Regulatory Status
  • Invasive alien species of Union concern (EU 2016/1141; 2017/1263; 2019/1262; 2022/1203) ?
  • Finland’s National Strategy on Invasive Alien Species (GR 2012) ?
Finnish Regional Red List Category
  • 2019 NA – Not Applicable
  • 2010 NA – Not Applicable
Expert
  • Mikko Piirainen
DNA barcode sequences
Impatiens glandulifera
10 public records
Informal groups
  • Vascular plants