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The Pansy is a very versatile plant the can be used several different ways in your landscape plans. If you live in a area that has mild winters, you can plant them in the fall to give your landscape some winter color. For winter planting you can plant them in a open area where they will get full sun--a little different then spring planting. You need to plant them before the frost hits, so they can get their roots established for the winter. Mid September to the first of October(in Oregon) is a good time to plant. Mix a low nitrogen balanced fertilizer in with the soil when planting. Pansies respond really well to a liquid fertilizer also. You will need to fertilize again in late January or early February. The only thing that will prevent them from doing well in the winter is if the weather is cold and damp all winter long. They will rot out if they don't see some sun. So some winters they will do great and other winters they might just sit there and do nothing. Winter pansies will do well until it starts heating up. Pansies in the winter are best used by planting them in a area where you can pull them up in the spring and plant some of your warm loving plants in place of them. It is worth it to try.

Springtime is when most people plant Pansies. Planting them in the spring is totally different then winter Pansies. Pansies do not like the heat. When you plant them in the spring you need to plant them in a mostly shady place. They will take morning sun but keep them away from the blaring afternoon sun. Plant them the same as you would winter Pansies by adding some fertilizer with the soil when you plant them.

Pansies are considered a perennial but weather conditions will prevent them from going year to year most of the time, but they do reseed themselves fairly well. Like most flowering plants it is good to dead head them to help promote more blooms. Once they get going try a Bloom fertilizer like 0-10-0 or 0-10-10, to help produce more flowers. Pansies come in a array of colors, so be creative and have fun. Happy planting