Hardy Pansies

Pansy

Violet family

How to say: Pan-cee

Description:
Pansies are among the most popular garden flowers today. They exhibit a wide
range of colors, markings, and sizes. Although pansies are hardy biennials,
they are also grown as annuals. The ideal temperature range for growing
pansies is from about 40 degrees F. at night to 60 degees F. during the day.
They will grow in all parts of the United States. They produce their best
flowers in the spring when the weather is mild, then fade and are usually
discarded when really hot weather arrives. In areas where long periods without
frost are common, strong pansy plants will bloom in the fall and even in the
winter.

Pansies come in named varieties of pure colors and mixtures, as well as first
generation hybrids that are becoming increasingly popular because of plant
vigor, uniform color and a wider color range, increased flower size, and
greater heat resistance. Pansies nowadays display scores of hues. They range
in color from white and pastel shades, rich gold and burnished orange, to deep
rose, violet and blue, and even deeper maroons and browns. They may be
single-colored, streaked, or blotched. Certain types have petals with
crinkled fluffy edges; others do not. Flower size may range from about 1 to 3
inches in diameter, depending on culture.


Planting

How to Grow:
Place pansies where they will receive the full sun or partial shade.
The new types thrive in full sun. Too much shade reduces the number of flowers
and flower size, and makes pansies spindly. Space plants for bedding about 7
to 12 inches apart. Do not plant pansies more than 3 years in a row in the
same location, because a fungus disease (Pythium) builds up in the soil.


How To Grow Seed:

Pansies thrive in rich, well-drained soil. So before you plant seeds, add
manure, peat moss, or a 5-10-5 commercial fertilizer to the soil. If the soil
is heavy, dig in some sand. Spade the soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches. Make
sure it is fine, and free of lumps, stones, and other coarse materials. If
you plant seed in boxes or frames, you can broadcast the seed or plant it in
rows. Select boxes 9 to 12 inches deep, and fill them with rich sandy loam
soil.

If you plant in open beds it is always better to sow seeds in rows about 4 to
6 inches apart, instead of broadcast. This makes it easier for you to identify
the seedlings when they emerge, and permits you to cultivate and weed more
readily.

Whether you plant indoors or out, in frames or in open beds, water the seedbed
first. Then when the water has drained away, sow the seeds thinly. Cover the
seeds with only an eighth of an inch of soil, or coarse washed sand, and press
down with a flat board. Water the bed again, but not so much as to wash the
seeds away. White plastic film, aluminum foil, or a piece of moist burlap
placed on the seed bed will help keep moisture in. This should be removed as
soon as the seeds begin to sprout, in about 5 to 8 days. Shade the seedlings
with a canopy for a few days until they have developed their first leaves.
They can usually stand direct sunlight by that time. The canopy (and it can be
a makeshift one) should be a foot or more above the bed to let air circulate.

Water frequently but lightly, in the morning. Seedlings should be neither too
dry nor too wet. If seed dries out after it begins to sprout, it will die. But
if you keep it too moist, it may rot. Raise the level of bedded soil 2 to 4
inches if necessary to keep water from standing in puddles.
Planting Seedlings

Landscape Uses:
Pansies are excellent choices for low borders and for bedding. You may place
them between other flowers too, especially tulips and other spring bulbs. They
will start to bloom soon after the earliest bulbs and will continue until
summer flowers take over. Pansies are also colorful in planters and window
boxes.