Question
i am living in ontario,canada i recently bought impatiens and i am being told that i planted them too close together.she told me i was going to choke them.there are in a box imbedded in the ground.when they fill out the box.will i be able to transplant them somewhere else in the ground?i dont know how careful that i have to be with them when i am taking them out.thank-you for your time

Answer
Christine,
Well, the truth is that you can plant them as close as three inches apart and the only difference that will make is that they will grow taller.   The closer you plant impatiens to each other the taller they grow (stretching to the light!) - these are pretty tough plants, and if you plant them tightly in a box they will fill the box quickly and grow about 15 inches or more tall.  

You could take out every other plant in the next week or two, and plant them elsewhere in the garden if that is OK with you.   I wouldn't wait any longer than two weeks however, because their root systems will become entangled and when you take out plants you will cut the roots of the plants you are removing AND the plants that are staying in the box.  Better to take plants out earlier than later.

If you do remove plants, just give the box a mild liquid feed (fertilizer - either chemical such as Miracle Grow or Peters etc, or organic such as fish and seaweed emulsion) and within two weeks it will fill out just fine.

I hope this helps!
C.L. Fornari
www.gardenlady.Com