Bush Fuchsia 'Annabel'

Full Flower, August 2002

Your plant is very nice. Do you cut it's branches in the fall ?

Yes we trim all the fuchsia cultivars back when they have lost their leaves.

Thank you for answering me. Do you have your fuchsia in a pot or in the garden ?
We, in Romania only have it in pots.

It depends, some are hardy here so we grow those in the ground but Annabel is in a pot so we can move it indoors in the winter.

Do you leave those in the ground uncovered ? Tell me please, do you have cold winters ? We have many frosts during winter and only a few plants survive.
You said that you trim back all the fuchsia cultivars when they have lost their leaves. How do they loose their leaves ? Do you water them less than usual ?

Hi

We don't have cold winters as a rule, some air and ground frosts with temperatures usually down to -5C to -7C, sometimes a little colder. These tender Fuchsias don't tolerate much if any frost and they drop their leaves at the beginning of winter, that's when we cut them back.

All the tender Fuchsias are in pots and are bought into a cold but frost free greenhouse, we don't water in the winter unless it becomes very dry and then only a little watering is done.

If you don't have a greenhouse and the ground doesn't become too frozen an old way of keeping Fuchsia is by digging a trench about 30cm deep, cut back the Fuchsias and bury them in the trench, covering the top of the soil with straw to insulate the area. This isn't always successful and you have to dig them out just before spring so you still need to keep them somewhere indoors until the last frost is gone. An easier way it to take cuttings and overwinter them indoors, it saves on space!

Hello !
Thank you, so many informations !
I don't have a greenhouse, but I have a balcony with windows, so it seems like a greenhouse. I will follow your advice and trim it back when it will loose all the leaves. I didn't know fuchsia musn't be watered during winter.
What does it mean a hardy fuchsia ?

My pleasure :)

Hardy Fuchsia is a little difficult to explain, they aren't very hardy at all. There are some species such as F. magellanica which survive temperatures down to about -7C but not many, however they are parents of some cultivars that will also survive -7C, Tom Thumb, Mrs Popple and Lady Boothby are just 3 of them.

Winter watering in England isn't very necessary because of our high rainfall, so even when they are in a greenhouse, it's quite humid. A lot of plants will survive a cold winter if kept drier than they are in the summer. We don't let them completely dry out but just give them a little water when the soil is dry.

Hi, Baa ! It's me again. I've trimmed back my fuchsia in autumn and they survived very well on my balcony, as you've told me.
Now, I was wondering if I have to trim them back again, because they've grown a lot, especially since I've begun usual watering again.
Can you tell me, please ?
Adina

Baa, how far back do you cut your fuchsias in fall? Just trimming them back or cutting them back to ground level? This is my first year with Fuchsias and since I've got 5 of them, I really hope I don't kill them all LOL

-Julie

Julie,
I've trimmed back my fuchsias almost to the ground level and they survived very well throughout winter. I kept them on closed balcony, wet them a little when they were dry, as Baa told me.

That's great news Adinamiti! Might be a little bit late now but we pinch out the tips of each branch to encourage the plant to bush out, it means that you lose the chance of earlier flowers but the bush looks better later in the year.

Salvia Lover, Adinamiti is right, Fuchsia takes a very hard pruning although you can trim, but you will end up with dead and old wood which makes the plant look leggy if you do that.

Hello, Baa, so glad to hear from you ! My fuchsia are so beautiful, the Annabel is blooming. I've pinched them out, as soon as the weather was warmer and I brought them out in the light . This year winter has been longer and spring was colder than usual. I began to water them in March.
Adina

Dear Baa, here are my fuchsia. The photo isn't so good, but hope you can see how well they've grown.
Adina

They are beautiful! Are they Fuchsia Lye's Unique?

I don't know, I'll try to find out. If you know best, please tell me.
I'll be out of town for 10 days, I'm going to the seaside and I won't be able to answer you until then. Bye !
Adina

Have a wonderful time!

Thanks , I'm back now and happy to be together with you again !
Adina

Good to see you again Adina!

Same here ! Baa, I haven't find yet the name of my fuchsia. Are you sure they are Fuchsia Lye's Unique ?
Adina