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michoumonster

fuschia newbie - dumb question?

michoumonster
17 years ago

i just bought a fuschia plant at Lowes today. i put it in a hanging pot. i was wondering, is this a perennial or an annual? it seems the fuschias on this forum live several years? but the one at Lowes says it is an annual, so i am a little confused. the fuschia i got is called fuschia purple rose diva. does anyone know how i should treat it? ie, should i throw it out when winter comes, or save it, etc.? i don't have a green thumb, and don't know much about plants, so i apologize for my questions if they seem stupid. thanks very much!

Comments (6)

  • michoumonster
    Original Author
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    wow, atash, thanks for all of the helpful info! your fuschias sound beautiful! do you have any pictures?

  • atash
    17 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks, Michoumonster. Gosh, you caught me with my pants down. It seems like I should have some photos and probably do have a very few (including, perhaps, one of the ill-fated Billy Greene which is the only Triphylla type I can grow and usually overwinter), but I haven't been diligent about photographing them.

    I promise I'll do better this year!

    You should be able to look these up someplace like

    images.google.com

    One you might like for your mild climate is Fuchsia boliviana. Annies Annuals (www.anniesannuals.com) has it. The blossoms are normally firey red, but there is a form called "alba" with white tubes and bright red petals that is rather striking. I have both forms. They are BARELY root hardy in my climate (and might even need a touch of protection in yours). A gloriously gaudy plant tho.

    Have a look at some of the Triphylla types. A lot of them are named after people and things known to Carl Bonstedt who bred several very popular types of these: Gartenmeister Bonstedt, Mary, Coralle, Traudchen Bonstedt, and Thalia.

    This website has lots of pictures:

    http://www.fuchsias.net/

    I think the height of Fuchsia popularity was probably in the 19th century, when people outside of the main Fuchsia-growing climates would grow Fuchsia magellanica (a quite hardy species, big but with small leaves and narrow, elongated flowers; common in western British Isles and Pacific Northwest, but even more so in its native Chile where it forms extensive thickets) as a freeze-back. As late as the 1950s they were very popular from about San Francisco north to Vancouver, but went into decline in popularity. A lot of fine old cultivars, many of them with huge flowers or unusual colors, are hard to find now except by knowing someone who has a specimen, generally through Fuchsia society memberships.

    Beware of wrong names. Extremely common with Fuchsias, perhaps because they are so easy to start that someone prone to losing lables or getting mixed up would start a big batch of them and sell or give them away under the wrong name, and everyone they gave them to would repeat the mistake (or compound it). Plus there are many hundreds of cultivars. Sometimes you also get identical Fuchsias with multiple different names, or variations of the same name, or named differently in different countries, etc.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Fuchsia boliviana alba

  • bluenme
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am in Upstate NY it gets very cold can theese still be weathered outside?

  • kenwoodlad
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi michoumonster,never be afraid to ask questions as we all have to start somewhere. If you want to see photos of fuchsias then log on to (www.salfordboltonfuchsiasociety.co.uk)it is my local society and the website has very many photos, plus other information. I have just been on vacation to Florida (three weeks in June 08) but could not find anyone there who knew anything about Fuchsias.

  • winnjoe
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Atash said 'your "annual" Fuchsia will live from year to year indefinitely'. How long realistically can a fuchsia that is brought in over winter (I'm in Canada) live? I have one that is at least 4 years old. I've started cuttings but I don't have a lot of room. Thanks.

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