Impatiens balsamina L.
البلسم، صفار، زفري
For people
- Eaten by people
- Edible
- Toxic to people
- Toxic
For livestock
- Grazed by livestock
- Unknown
- Toxic to livestock
- Unknown
Edibility and safety notes
Leaves and young shoots are eaten as a cooked vegetable in parts of Asia (e.g. Bali) and the seeds are edible, but this is a minor food. Raw leaves are mildly poisonous: they contain calcium oxalate, which thorough cooking or drying breaks down; do not eat them raw or in quantity, and people prone to kidney stones, gout or arthritis should avoid them. Flower and leaf juice stains skin and nails like henna. The Omani field guide rates it as grazing, but no independent source on livestock eating it, or on its safety for livestock, was found.
This guide is a hobby project, not expert advice. Never eat a wild plant, or feed it to animals, on the strength of this page alone. Read the disclaimer
Description
An erect, sparsely-branched tender annual of the Balsaminaceae family, 15-75 cm tall. Elliptic to lance-shaped deeply serrate light green leaves up to 9 cm long. Cup-shaped single to double flowers in shades of pink, rose, red, purple, or white. Capsules dehisce explosively to disperse seeds.
Habitat
Wet, rather open localities or forest undergrowth at elevations from sea level to 1250 m. Prefers moist settings with low drought tolerance.
Distribution
Native to India and Sri Lanka; widely cultivated as an ornamental and naturalized through the tropics and subtropics, including the Arabian Peninsula. In Oman it is an introduced plant found in the wetter parts of the south.
Pastoral value
Rated as good grazing by the Omani field guide; no independent source on its use as livestock fodder was found.
Other uses
Widely cultivated as an ornamental. Flowers and leaves are used across Asia to dye fingernails and skin red as a substitute for henna. Traditionally used in South-East Asia as leaf poultices for wounds and skin complaints, and the flowers for burns and joint pain. The seeds yield an oil used for lamps. Leaves (cooked) and seeds are eaten locally in Asia.
Sources
- الدليل الحقلي المصور للنباتات البرية في سلطنة عُمان (BOOK.pdf p.50)
- PROSEA (Pl@ntUse) — Impatiens balsamina — plantuse.plantnet.org(PROSEA)
- Temperate Plants Database (PFAF-derived) — Impatiens balsamina — temperate.theferns.info
- NC State Extension Plant Toolbox — Impatiens balsamina — plants.ces.ncsu.edu
- Plants of the World Online — Impatiens balsamina var. balsamina (range; Oman introduced) — powo.science.kew.org
- Wikipedia — Impatiens balsamina — en.wikipedia.org
- PFAF: Impatiens balsamina — pfaf.org
- Useful Tropical Plants: Impatiens balsamina — tropical.theferns.info