Pansies: Tough Guys of the Garden

Pansies are ideal for edging along borders and do well squeezed among bulbs and perennials. Their bright colors add zip to early emerging spring gardens. They can be planted close together for a soft cohesiveness in flowerbeds.

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Interesting that calling someone a “pansy” means they’re puny and frail. But in a garden, pansies are cool weather toughs. They’ll remain happy through frost and keep smiling in the snow. Spring and fall favorites!

Right now pansies fill our patio area along with violas, another sturdy flower. The two are closely related.

History of Pansies

The early Greeks cultivated violas for medicinal use then in the 400 B.C. someone found similar plants growing in more open, sunlit areas. With a larger bloom this wildflower differed in two ways from the viola. The plant grew from the ground on one main stem and branched above ground. Viola plants branch below ground with many plants sharing the same root system.

The origin of today’s pansies began in the early 1800’s when an English gardener, William Thompson, began crossing various Viola species. By 1839 he had a bloom without lines of dark color but huge blocks of color. His progeny pansy soon became popular throughout Europe. He called his flower the Medora, but somewhere along the way became called pansy, a word that traces back to the French word pensee, meaning thought or remembrance.

In the late 1880 an American mail-order company sold 100,000 seed packets of pansies for several years. People couldn’t get enough.

Cultural Needs of Pansies

They aren’t fussy but do like loose, fertile soil. They like sun but not heat. Morning sun and speckled afternoon shade is ideal. They like regular watering; but don’t over-water and don’t let them dry out.

Design Tips

Pansies are ideal for edging along borders and do well squeezed among bulbs and perennials. Their bright colors add zip to early emerging spring gardens. They can be planted close together for a soft cohesiveness in flowerbeds.

Maintenance

Pansies appreciate regular fertilizing, but too much makes them leggy. Deadheading encourages more blooms. During the summer, cut the plants back and mulch. With the return of cool weather, they’ll often return also with a second round of blooms. They can also self-seed and often return the following year, but not as strong.

So splash your garden with colorful pansies and be linked to this long-time favorite of gardeners for centuries.