Impatiens niamniamensis


Impatiens niamniamensis, common name Congo cockatoo, parrot impatiens or simply parrot plant, is a species of flowering plant in the family Balsaminaceae.

Description

Impatiens niamniamensis grows about long. This evergreen, perennial species has an erect, succulent, brown stem resembling wood. Leaves are simple, ovate-oblong or elliptical, spirally arranged, about 10 cm long.
This plant produces bright and colourful bird-shaped flowers with a long, curled nectar spur. These unusual flowers vary in colour and size, but those of the clone most common in cultivation in Europe and America are usually scarlet red and yellow and can reach a length of about. Fruits are explosive capsules of about 14–16 mm.

Distribution and habitat

Impatiens niamniamensis comes from tropical Africa. It can be found from Cameroon throughout tropical Africa, up to Sudan and down to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It grows in moist and shaded bushlands, at an elevation of above sea level.