Are you feeling adventurous this spring? Want to add a splash of color to your flowerpots?
Get to know pansies — a type of viola! These early spring flowers can add a BIG pop of color to your Colorado garden, especially if you’re ready to kiss winter goodbye.
You may be thinking, “Wait, can I plant flowers in pots in March? It seems a little early.”
You can plant pansies in March, April and May in most of Colorado, even though we can still get snow and yo-yo temperature swings. (Weird, right?)
If you live someplace else in the West, your timing may vary just a little, but timing aside, all these tips apply.
Pansies can handle cool temperatures.
Pansies are in their happy place when temperatures are in the 40s to 60s, and they’re surprisingly tolerant of our wacky spring weather.
Typically, March and April are good times to start planting pansies at our lower elevations in Colorado.
In my garden in the Front Range, I find that late March is often an ideal time to plant pansies. We’re usually past all those arctic temps. (More on this below!)
If you live in the mountains, I may wait a bit longer, depending on how cold your temperatures are and how much snow you have.
What growing conditions do pansies like?
Pansies grow well in dirt (or “soil” in garden lingo) that drains well and is rich in nutrients.
Many of us don’t have rich, well-draining soils in the intermountain west. But no worries! You can plant your pansies in pots with a good potting soil.
Western states (like Colorado) get intense sunlight, so it helps to plant your pansies someplace that faces east, whether it’s a patio, front porch or garden. These spots get morning sunlight, which isn’t as hard on pansies as afternoon sunlight.
If you’re planting pansies in afternoon sunlight, you may want to find a spot that gets “dappled” light (sunlight through tree branches) or a little shade (like a western-facing porch that gets some cover).
Can you plant your pansies directly in a west-facing or south-facing spot?
Sure!
Just know that as soon as temperatures heat up, your pansies may start looking stressed. You’d likely get a little more mileage out of them in an east-facing garden.
What kind of care do pansies need?
Pansies benefit from “deadheading” (trimming off dead blooms) and fertilizing. This keeps them looking good.
Look for a mild flower fertilizer with a 5-10-5 ratio. Those are the numbers you’ll see on the container. This ratio helps support root growth and encourage new flower blooms.
What to do when you bring your pansies home
It’s tempting to plant your pansies right away.
You got them to enjoy them, right?
But chances are they’ve been growing in a cozy, warm greenhouse. They’ve been living large in spa-like conditions, and they’re tender. Gradually exposing them to outdoor conditions can help them toughen up. In garden lingo, this is known as “hardening” your plants.
Otherwise, they may struggle.
You can find out how to harden pansies here.
Pansies can handle cold temps, but they DO have their limits.
Pansies that are healthy and have been planted a while can usually handle quick dips into the teens and single digits.
But newly-planted pansies can be more sensitive.
After a warm, sunny day in Colorado in the early spring, it’s easy to forget how cold it can get at night, so watch those nighttime temps.
While newly-planted pansies can usually tolerate a light frost, it helps to protect them (keep them warm) if your temperatures are going to drop below freezing.
You can find 6 ways to protect your flowers from frosts and freezes here.
PRO TIP: Keep your eye on the temps BEFORE you plant your pansies. If the weather forecast shows multiple days when temperatures are going to dip well below freezing, just hold off on planting them until you get through that cold spell.
Pansies don’t like hot weather.
Let’s say you live someplace with blazing hot summers, like our lower elevations in Colorado and Utah.
When temperatures start to rise, it’s a good idea to replace your pansies with flowers that are happier in the heat. Think of this like changing out your wardrobe from your spring clothes to your summer clothes.
For example, when summer arrives, I replace the pansies in my western-facing flowerpots with flowers that can handle the hot afternoon sun.
Do you have to replace your pansies?
Nope … but they’ll probably stop blooming in the heat, and they may look stressed.
Translation: They won’t look very good!
Pansies are treated as “annuals” in states like Colorado.
This means you’ll enjoy them for one growing season, but it’s unlikely they’ll return next year.
Related topics that may interest you:
- 3 misconceptions about when to buy and plant flowers that can lead to dead plants (ack!)
- A simple flowerpot design tip: Take your flowerpots from “meh” to “wow!”
- “Will snow kill my tulips?”
