Jewelweed
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 Impatiens capensis
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Jewelweed is a North American common name for a number of species of flowering plant in the genus Impatiens, family Balsaminaceae, native to eastern North America. The plant typically grows about 1 to 1.5 m tall, and dies after one season. Like other Impatiens, Jewelweed is notable for having seed pods that burst when touched, spreading seeds over several square meters. Because of this, it also has the common name (shared with many other Impatiens species) of Touch-me-not.
- Species include
- Impatiens capensis Meerb. — Spotted Jewelweed or Orange Jewelweed; orange flowers
- Impatiens pallida Nutt. — Pale Jewelweed or Yellow Jewelweed; yellow (rarely cream-colored) flowers.
These are plants of moist, rich soils in valleys and stream-bottoms. The Pale Jewelweed tends to grow slightly taller and to tolerate somewhat shadier sites than the Orange Jewelweed, while the latter is more common and better able to grow in disturbed areas.
Both species can and have been used as preventatives and palliatives for poison ivy rash, bee stings, insect bites, and athlete's foot. To do so, one can take the whole plant, crush it into a ball, and rub it onto the exposed area, or one can crush some jewelweed stems in a container, and then use a cotton ball to soak up the juice. The anti-inflammitory/fungicidal chemical in this plant is 2-methoxy-1,4-naphthoquinone [1].
An oft-repeated folk saying, "Wherever poison ivy is found, jewelweed grows close by," is untrue; poison ivy grows in a wide variety of habitats, while jewelweed is restricted to moist bottomlands and valleys with rich soil. The reverse is true — wherever jewelweed is found, poison ivy is usually close by. Jewelweed grows in sunny, wet areas, such as roadside ditches and fens. The 1 cm (½ inch) long flowers are shaped like a shoe. Some plants have orange flowers with dark spots, while others have plain yellow flowers.
The Orange Jewelweed, Impatiens capensis, was transported in the 19th and 20th by humans to England, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Finland, and potentially other areas of Northern and Central Europe. These naturalized populations persist in the absence of any common cultivation by people. The orange jewelweed is quite similar to Impatiens noli-tangere, an Impatiens species native to Europe and Asia. No evidence exists of natural hybrids, although the habitats occupied by the two species are very similar. There are currently no records of pale jewelweed being cultivated outside North America, nor are there documented naturalizations.
Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (And Not-So-Wild) Places
