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How to Grow Pansies: The Complete Pansy Flower Guide

yellow and purple pansies in terracotta pots
Photo Credit
Pixabay
Botanical Name
Viola x wittrockiana
Plant Type
Flower
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Part Sun
Soil pH
Slightly Acidic to Neutral
Bloom Time
Spring
Summer
Fall
Winter
Flower Color
Blue
Multicolor
Orange
Pink
Purple
Red
White
Yellow
Hardiness Zone
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
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Planting, Growing, and Caring for Pansies

Catherine Boeckmann

Pansies are the cheerful flowers with upturned 鈥渇aces.鈥 They love cool weather and are popular for growing in spring and fall. They鈥檙e also edible, adding color to salads, drinks, and cakes. Here鈥檚 how to plant pansies and keep them growing and blooming for bright, happy gardens and containers.

About Pansies

Pansies are a type of Viola (Viola 脳 wittrockiana) with large heart-shaped, overlapping petals and one of the widest ranges of bright, pretty colors and patterns.

Suitable for containers and borders and as ground cover, they are a go-to flower for reliable color almost year-round in some places. Pansies look pretty in a monochrome scheme or mixed colors; they also look pretty when planted with other cool-season flowers such as primroses, trailing lobelia, and sweet alyssum.

Are Pansies Annual or Perennial Flowers? 

Most gardeners treat pansies (and all violas) as an annual, but they鈥檙e actually hardy in USDA Hardiness Zones 3-8. They tend to get too leggy in the heat of summer. There hasn鈥檛 been much success in producing heat-tolerant pansies that can adequately survive hot weather.

Pansies are surprisingly hearty in cold weather, though. They鈥檒l survive a frost, bouncing back from even single-digit temperatures. If the blooms wither in the cold, the plants will often stay alive to bloom again, which makes them a great flowering plant for fall and early winter color.

Pansies in a field

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Planting

Plant in moist, humus-rich, well-drained soil. See our articles on soil amendments and preparing soil for planting for more information. 

Pansies like full or partial sun but need cooler temperatures to thrive. The ideal planting site will get morning sun but avoid the late afternoon heat. 

Space the plants about 7 to 12 inches apart. They will spread about 9 to 12 inches and grow about 6 to 9 inches tall.

鈥淎 technique gaining in popularity is to plant spring blooming bulbs in fall in the usual fashion, and then install pansies in the same bed, right over the bulbs,鈥 explains . 鈥淭he bulbs will emerge and bloom, providing additional color while the bulb foliage ripens.  This is a great way to get more color from your beds until it鈥檚 time to plant summer annuals.鈥

When to Plant Pansies

  • Pansies can be planted in the early spring or in the fall. 
  • Pansies can be finicky to start from seed; buying established plants from a local nursery is a lot easier. Plus, you’ll get blooms a lot sooner.
  • But if you want to start from seed, start pansy seeds indoors in late winter, 8 to 10 weeks before the last spring frost, for early spring and summer flowering. Or, start seeds in late summer for fall and winter flowering. Pansy seeds may be slow to germinate (typically emerging in anywhere from 1 to 3 weeks, depending on soil temperature).
  • Set pansy plants in the ground when it becomes workable in the spring. They grow best when soil temperatures are between 45掳F and 65掳F (7掳C and 18掳C).
  • Pansies can tolerate a light frost just after planting, but try to hold off on putting them in the ground if temperatures are still regularly reaching well below freezing.

Growing Pansies in Pots

  • Pansies are great for containers. Just use standard potting soil designed for containers.
  • Plant in portable containers (12 inches or less in diameter) so the plants can be moved to a cooler area when the sun starts to get stronger. Early in the spring season or in the fall, a south-facing patio might be the perfect spot. During the summer, move pansies to the east side of your home for morning sun and afternoon shade.

Growing

How to Care for Pansies

  • Remember to water pansies regularly. One of the most common reasons pansies fail is that they are not watered enough, so if they are not doing well, try watering them more.
  • You can use a general, all-purpose fertilizer around your pansies to help them grow. Be wary of using a nitrogen-heavy fertilizer, as this can result in more foliage than flowers.
  • Remove faded/dead flowers to encourage the plants to produce more blooms and prolong the blooming season. You can either pinch off the flower bud or cut it off just below the faded bud.
pansies purple and yellow pansy flowers
Beautiful pansies are a wonderful addition to any garden!

Types

  • 鈥楯olly Joker鈥 blooms in spring and summer and has orange flowers with deep purple upper petals and a purple outline.
  • Princess Series, which offers a variety of colors such as blue, purple, and yellow.
  • Fama Series, which flowers in winter and spring and offers a wide variety of single- and mixed-colored flowers.

See 10 pansy varieties and pretty pictures!

Gardening Products

Wit and Wisdom

  • Pansies symbolize 鈥渢hinking鈥 or 鈥渢houghts.鈥 The word 鈥減ansy鈥 itself comes from French 辫别苍蝉茅别, meaning 鈥渢hought.鈥 Find out more flower meanings here.
  • Pansies are one of several edible garden flowers! They have a mild minty flavor and make for a lovely edible flourish on a salad or dessert.

Pests/Diseases

How Do You Keep Rabbits From Eating Pansies? 

Place dried sulfur, available at farm and garden supply stores, around the edge of your garden. You could also sprinkle bloodmeal around your pansies after each rainfall; it will also benefit the soil by adding nitrogen. However, don’t try it if you have dogs that roam the garden. They may be attracted to the scent and start digging.

Flowers
About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it鈥檚 not surprising that she and The Old Farmer鈥檚 蜜桃恋人 found each other. She leads digital content for the 蜜桃恋人 website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana. Read More from Catherine Boeckmann
 

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Comments

As mentioned below, pansies are technically perennials but are generally treated as annuals because they tend to get leggy when they bloom in the second year. It is therefore best to remove them and plant new ones next year.

Since they are so hard to kill, They live here in North Carolina under a six inch blanket of snow and still are blooming happily when it melts,
we just wait. If they ever do die here is what we do: Everyone on our block gardens and we are of many varied backgrounds, so we have a
short non-denominational service, followed by a gala pot-luck dinner. Then we dig them under and plant petunias. Aged chicken or cow manure
is often side served (for the petunias, not the pot-luck) and it all works out.

May jo burkhard (not verified)

8 years 6 months ago

Are they deer resistant? Everything I plant the seers eat before they even bloom. All I have left are stubs.

No, sorry, pansies are not deer-resistant.  Here’s a good list of plants that deer do not like (as much as others!): 

Rachel (not verified)

8 years 6 months ago

Hi,

I'm hoping to grow pansies from seed for my late summer wedding. When would be the best time to plant them?

Thanks for your suggestions!

Pansies don’t like heat—preferring the cool spring and fall temperatures; they often fade in summer. But in general, you can start pansies indoors about 6 to 8 weeks before transplanting outdoors. Keep up with deadheading, watering, and place in partial shade if you live in an area with hot summers, to try to keep the plant going until cooler weather sets in. If these are to be wedding favors, or in a flower arrangement, you might try growing them completely indoors as houseplants in order to try to maintain that cooler temperature (daytime around 70F; nighttime between 55 and 65F) — indirect sunlight, but lots of it. They take about 7 to 14 days to germinate, and then about 65 to 85 days to bloom — so about 72 to 99 days total — check the days to germination, and days to maturity/bloom on the seed packet for your particular cultivar. Or, perhaps consult with a local garden nursery about alternatives that might do well in your climate in late summer. Good luck - and best wishes for a beautiful wedding!

that's great, thanks for your help! I'll try indoors, I have a spot that is light and not too warm

Thank you :)

Kady Hampton (not verified)

8 years 7 months ago

Do you have to plant pansies annually? If not, how often?

As mentioned in the comments below, pansies are generally treats as an annual because they get so leggy. This means that most folks plant them early in the season, and plant new ones next year.

Liz (not verified)

8 years 7 months ago

I brought my pansies on Dec 20/15; they bloom amazingly well and are still blooming, not so profusely now but still beautiful. The problem is the plants are getting bigger but the flowers are still same size. I don't know if is time for change the plants or what. Can you please help me, I don't want throw them away but if it is time, it is time... :(