Care for pansies: overwinter, water & fertilize

In spring and autumn, pansies can convince with their flowers. But how are they to be looked after and how do you successfully overwinter them?

Not only because of their name do pansies fall (Viola × wittrockiana) on. They convince with their colorful, characteristic flowers that shine towards us from plant bowls or the bed from March. But despite their imposing appearance, pansies, like almost all members of the violet genus, are incredibly modest and, with the right care, extremely robust. Even winter freezing temperatures are not a problem if proper winter protection is provided.

Properly caring for pansies

In a partially shaded to sunny spot in the garden or on the terrace, your pansy can loll against the sun and form many colorful flowers. You don't even have to dig deep into your bag of tricks to do this. Apart from a nutrient-rich, water-permeable soil, the robust little plants do not need to be very happy. No wonder that they are among the most popular bedding and balcony plants. If you want to prolong the flowering phase, simply clean out withered inflorescences and broken parts of the plant regularly.

Pansies watern

Pansies are extremely sensitive when it comes to waterlogging. If there is too much moisture, the plants are susceptible to root rot or leaf blotch disease. The substrate should therefore never be wet, but always moist. Low-lime rainwater is recommended as irrigation water.

Fertilize pansies

In terms of nutritional requirements, the pansy is quite frugal - so fertilizing is not absolutely necessary. It is sufficient to add humus, compost or a long-term fertilizer to the soil before the pansies are planted out. This serves to provide a long-term supply of nutrients. Our Plantura Organic flower fertilizer is such a long-term fertilizer and releases its nutrients gently and sustainably to the pansy.

Pot plantings are given a light fertilizer every two to four weeks. For this purpose, liquid fertilizer is added to the irrigation water. Instead of using commercially available mineral fertilizers, you can use an organic fertilizer. These are more environmentally friendly and sustainably promote soil life. Our purely organic Plantura Organic flower & balcony fertilizer is an excellent choice, for example. The same applies here: more is not always better. If over-fertilized, pansies tend to grow in length and become infected. In addition, root growth is inhibited.

summary: Properly care for, water and fertilize pansies

• Location: sunny to partially shaded
• Soil: rich in nutrients, permeable to water
• Clean up withered inflorescences
• Watering: keep the substrate moist, but not wet; very sensitive to waterlogging
• Fertilization: Mixing in long-term fertilizers or humus / compost
• Potted plants: every 2 - 4 weeks liquid fertilizer in the irrigation water

Successfully overwintering pansies

The Wild Pansy (Viola tricolor) is at home on meadows, along roadsides and on fallow land in Central Europe. The wild form must therefore be able to withstand a bit of snow. She passed this winter hardiness on to her domesticated relatives. Planted in the bed, garden pansies can also tolerate winter temperatures. How hardy the plants are, however, differs from variety to variety. But with a few simple steps you can increase the likelihood of successful wintering for each variety:

• October: cut back to just above the ground
• Cover plants with conifer branches, fleece, brushwood, leaves, moss or bark mulch
• Neither water nor fertilize
• End of February / beginning of March: removal of winter protection

The cover of the plants does not only serve as protection against longer periods of frost. It also protects the plants from freezing in snow-free winters. If the root ball is frozen, the plant cannot absorb water. If there is no protection from the winter sun, water will evaporate and the plant will die. Pansies in pots need all-round winter protection. They are cut back, covered with fleece and the pot is wrapped with fleece or newspaper. The pots are then overwintered in a sheltered, cool place such as the cellar or the gazebo. Covered plants are lightly watered even in winter. There is no fertilization. From the beginning to the end of March, the plants are freed from their comfortably warm sleeping bags.

Note: When snow falls, it should remain on top of the pansy, as it acts like a warming blanket.

Growing pansies perennial

The commercially available pansies are annual or biennial plants. After the second year the plants have left the flowering phase of their life behind and cross the threshold of well-deserved retirement. Beauty is a fleeting attribute. It is up to you whether the "step-omichen" has to give way to younger, more handsome specimens or whether to spend a quiet retirement in a corner of your garden.

More tips on Plants of pansies get in this article.