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Himalayan Balsam

Impatiens glandulifera

Photo by LarsKorb
Published on Project Noah
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53.4757, 10.3673

Field Notes

Description:

Growing to 1 to 2 m high, with a soft green or red-tinged stem, and lanceolate leaves 5 to 23 cm long. The crushed foliage has a strong musty smell. The flowers are pink, with a hooded shape, 3 to 4 cm tall and 2 cm broad; the flower shape has been compared to a policeman's helmet, giving rise to the alternative common name Policeman's Helmet.

Habitat:

Native to the Himalayas. Via human introduction it is now extant across much of the Northern Hemisphere.

Species ID Suggestions

Drüsiges Springkraut

Impatiens glandulifera
Dag Wixforth
1

Comments (4)
oxyjack
Wow, I'm so glad you posted this! I have a similar mystery plant, same flower, bud and leaf shape, but the blossoms are differently colored. I wouldn't have guessed an Impatiens.
LarsKorb
And again big thanks to hof.balm for identification
LarsKorb
Awesome are the 100.000, indeed. :)

Spotted for Missions

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PublishedSeptember 23, 2011

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