Hybrid fuchsia is a popular garden and indoor plant; it does not overwinter in open ground in Russia. In the West, it is often grown as an annual crop; at best, the queen cells are left until spring for propagation. The most versatile is the ampelous fuchsia - it can be planted in a hanging basket, a stationary flowerpot, a flower pot or in a high flowerbed.
Botanical description
Fuchsia is a genus of woody perennials from the fireweed family, which includes about 100 species. Comes from the humid tropics and subtropics of Central and South America, Tahiti, New Zealand.
Appearance
In their homeland, fuchsias are mostly evergreens. In Russia they behave like deciduous perennial trees or shrubs.
The leaves of the crop are collected in whorls of 3-5 pieces or opposite. The length ranges from 1 to 25 cm, but usually within 4-5 cm. The plates are simple, pointed, with a finely toothed edge, elongated oval in shape. The color is green or reddish, there are variegated varieties.
Fuchsia shoots can be relatively flexible and thin, or rigid and erect. The vast majority of cultivars have untrimmed stems that are something in between. Over time, the branches become woody and covered with beige bark.
Bloom
Fuchsia buds form at the tips of the current year's shoots. Flowers consist of two parts, the color of which can be the same, different or differ in shade:
- The calyx is 4 lanceolate, with pointed tips of the lobes, fused at the base into a long tube. After the fuchsia buds have fully bloomed, they are located perpendicular to the petals or slightly cover the base of the corolla, but more often they are bent back to varying degrees. In the latter case, the sepals can be straight, curved, like a bow string, or even slightly twisted. Color: white, all shades of pink or red.
- The fuchsia corolla is often much shorter than the sepals, simple, with 4-5 petals, or terry, looking like a fluffy skirt. The color of the corolla can be white, different shades of pink, red, blue, light blue, violet. Sometimes the petals are painted with contrasting streaks or strokes.
Fuchsias can also be distinguished by their long anthers and pistil protruding beyond the corolla. In ampelous varieties, the buds are attached to a long drooping pedicel and range in size from 1 to 10 cm.
Under natural conditions, the crop is pollinated by hummingbirds. After fertilization, dark purple berries measuring 5-25 mm are set. In most species they are edible and taste like a mixture of citrus and black pepper.
History of appearance
Fuchsia was developed as a houseplant by the French scientist C. Plumier in 1695. He met an unknown but very beautiful plant during an expedition to the West Indies and brought it to Europe. The flower received its name (Fuchsia L) in honor of L. von Fuchs, a physician and botanist from Germany. The plant fell in love with flower growers, and since then more than a hundred different varieties of this exotic flower have been bred.
What does a flower look like
Homeland of the plant
Fuchsia is a plant from the southern hemisphere; in its wild form, these plants grow in the tropical and subtropical forests of South America, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and New Zealand.
For your information! Absolutely all parts of the flower can be eaten. Its fruits and flowers make delicious jam, and festive dishes are decorated with candied inflorescences.
Flower in the rainforest
Varieties and varieties
Official sources write that there are more than 2000 fuchsia cultivars. Fans claim that there are from 16 to 22 thousand of them in catalogs. It is impossible to determine the exact quantity without a unified database.
One of the most controversial topics is what variety fuchsia belongs to:
- bush (upright) with rigid, erect shoots;
- semi-ampeloid (lax variety) – first grows upward, droops with age;
- hanging (trailer, pendula) - with thin hanging branches.
There are very few varieties that clearly show the characteristics of the first or third group in any conditions. The majority belongs to the second.
Semi-ampeloid fuchsias can grow strong straight or flexible thin shoots, depending on cultivation and care at home. Whether the bush will be ampelous is influenced by lighting, pruning, and fertilizing.
Experienced gardeners skillfully use this and form plants at their own discretion.
There are ampelous fuchsias with barely enough shoots to cover the container, or with very long stems.
Kirsus Spangles
Circus Spangles is an American large-flowered variety from 1990 with white sepals slightly touched with pink. The skirt is terry, round, the color depends on the growing conditions, it can be raspberry or cherry.
White and red-orange strokes are possible on the petals. The variety is half ampelous.
Bora Bora
Bora Bora - fuchsia of American selection (1966). The sepals are reflexed, white, the corollas are densely double, the skirt is blue, with pale pink large strokes.
Whether the variety will be ampelous depends on its formation.
Marinka
Marinka grows as a bush at a young age. Then the branches begin to bend, the fuchsia turns into an ampelous one.
The flowers are simple, rarely semi-double, the sepals are bright red, the petals are crimson.
Millennium
Millenium is an ampelous variety.
The skirt, depending on the place of planting and care, is very dark burgundy or almost black, the sepals are of a rare purple color.
Blue Angel
Blue Angel is a fuchsia with huge flowers, up to 12 cm.
The sepals are snow-white, the terry skirts are blue. Ampel bush.
Blackie
Fuchsia Blacky is distinguished by crimson sepals bent almost to the peduncle and coal-violet, almost black corollas.
When describing the variety, different sources call it erect or ampelous. The growth pattern depends on how the plant is formed.
Southgate
The name Southgate translates as Southern Gate. Medium-sized soft pink flowers abundantly cover the half-ampeled bush.
The shade of the sepals is slightly darker than that of the terry corollas.
Blue Eaz
Fuchsia Blue Eyes is an ampelous variety with several rows of petals.
The flowers are red-blue, double, large, pink stamens.
How does it winter
If the plant is kept in a room with poor lighting throughout the winter, its stems will stretch out and the bush will begin to shed its leaves, which will lead to a loss of decorativeness. In order to avoid this, it is necessary to use artificial lighting.
Moving the flower pot to the balcony or basement will also help. After you transfer the fuchsia, be sure to reduce watering and stop applying fertilizers altogether .
With the onset of spring, the plant should be gradually accustomed to rising temperatures.
Planting at home
Ampelous fuchsia should be planted 2-3 cuttings in one container:
- Drainage is placed in the pot, the substrate is filled, holes are made according to the shape and size of the root system of young plants.
- Rooted shoots or grown seedlings are taken out of the cups and planted without deepening the central stem.
- Watered.
- If the fuchsia is weak or the root is poorly developed, cover it with a glass cap or cellophane.
- Place in a slightly shaded place.
Strong plants with a powerful root system only need protection from bright sun for 2-3 days and regular spraying of the crown.
Soil requirements
Ampelous fuchsia loves soil with a slightly acidic reaction. It should be structured, loose, and allow water and air to pass through well until the next transplant.
You can use a ready-made substrate for violets or geraniums. Many gardeners who practice intensive care and do not forget about fertilizing grow fuchsias, including hanging ones, in a mixture of peat and coconut fiber. The last component is needed so that in case of accidental drying, you do not place the pot in a bucket of water - peat tends to clump together, dry peat does not absorb liquid well, and coconut fiber absorbs it instantly.
If the owners prefer soil substrates, you can mix equal shares:
- turf soil;
- rotted leaves;
- humus;
- sand;
- sour peat.
Choosing a pot
It is better to grow ampelous fuchsias in ordinary containers. And then put them in a flower pot or hanging basket and take them outside to the balcony.
The container should be proportional to the root, quite close, but containing at least 1 liter of substrate per adult bush. Flowering will begin only when the adventitious shoots entwine the clump.
You can hear the objection that ampelous fuchsia perfectly forms buds in large flowerpots. But not one, but several plants are planted there at once, otherwise it is difficult to obtain a lush, beautiful bush, especially with cascading ampelous varieties.
It is better to take a plastic pot for fuchsia, with several large holes; be sure to place drainage at the bottom. It is needed:
- so that excess moisture does not stagnate in the root area;
- to improve aeration, which is no less important.
The design of a flowerpot or hanging basket is not particularly important. If you care for the ampelous fuchsia correctly, it will cover the walls with flowering vines.
Problems during cultivation
If the gardener does not care properly when growing this ornamental plant, the following problems may arise:
- Falling buds. In this case, you need to lower the temperature in the room, adjust the frequency of watering, feed the plant and provide it with sufficient lighting.
- Yellowing of foliage. This situation occurs when overwatering.
- Falling leaves. Dry indoor air, elevated temperatures and lack of fertilizers lead to this problem.
- Lack of flowering. In order for the plant to bloom at the right time, it must be pruned in a timely manner and provided with sufficient lighting. It is also recommended not to overfeed fuchsia with nitrogen fertilizers, as they negatively affect flowering.
- The appearance of dark spots on the leaves. In this case, it is recommended to reduce the humidity and ventilate the room.
Features of care at home and outdoors
The general rules are mostly the same, although there are differences. Despite the fact that fuchsia comes from the tropics or subtropics, growing the flower in southern gardens is a big problem due to the heat, whiteflies, and overheating of the root system.
Selecting a location
Ampelous fuchsia loves fresh air, but indoors, thanks to air conditioning, it is easier to control the temperature. The plant prefers very moderate temperatures, no more than 20-24° C.
Lighting needs to be intense, bright, but without direct midday rays:
- on the southern window sill protection in the form of a light curtain is required;
- in open ground - planting next to a fence, buildings or larger plants that cover the hanging fuchsia in the middle of the day.
The culture tolerates light partial shade; some cultivars can bloom in poor light, but not in deep shade. In flowerpots, bushes can be placed under a canopy or attached to the branches of a tree with an openwork crown.
Ampelous fuchsias are not planted in flat flower beds - when they come into contact with the ground, the long shoots begin to rot. But they can be placed on tall or terraced flower beds, or in stationary flowerpots.
Watering
Regular irrigation is needed, some sources recommend that the soil be constantly moist, others advise drying it out by a few millimeters. In summer, fuchsia may require daily watering. In flower beds, the soil is mulched with peat or bark to retain moisture; in pots, with sphagnum.
In cool weather and before the dormant period, watering is reduced.
Air humidity needs to be high. In hot weather, the bushes are sprayed several times a day, trying not to get it on the flowers.
Feeding
In the spring, to resume the growing season, grow new shoots and leaves, ampelous fuchsia needs nitrogen; during flowering, phosphorus, potassium plus microelements. The plant especially suffers from magnesium deficiency.
Every 2 weeks in the middle of the season, use complex mineral fertilizers for flowers with the same content of macroelements, for example, 10:10:10 or 20:20:20. Long-acting fertilizers can be used in potted crops.
From the end of summer, nitrogen is eliminated. Feed with phosphorus and potassium preparations.
Formation
Ampelous fuchsia blooms on the tops of the current year's shoots, but only a branched bush will be beautiful. You will have to sacrifice early flowering.
The following algorithm is suitable for young or adult plants, barely rooted cuttings:
- Branches that have grown a little after winter are pinched over 2-3 pairs of leaves.
- The same is done with all the side shoots until the bush takes on a beautiful lush shape.
Depending on the variety and care, 6-12 weeks will pass from the time of the last pinching to the flowering of the ampelous fuchsia.
At the peak of decorativeness, faded corollas and yellowed leaves are removed, and elongated thin shoots are shortened. In case of accidental pollination, which happens extremely rarely, it is better to remove the fruits - nothing worthwhile will grow if you collect the seeds.
At the end of the season, after the leaves of the ampelous fuchsia begin to fly off, the bush needs to be pruned. In hanging varieties, the shoots are shortened by about a third.
Transfer
Transshipment is allowed without disturbing the earthen coma of a flowering plant, although it is better to do this annually in the spring. The operation cannot be performed:
- during the dormant period, when some of the roots die off, life processes are suspended;
- at high temperatures – the crop does not tolerate heat well.
If you are going to plant ampelous fuchsia in open ground, do it after the ground has warmed up to 15° C. The above-ground part of most species and varieties tolerates a short-term decrease to 0° C, holds well at 5° C, but the root does not work, the buds may fall off , even leaves.
Wintering
In potted crops, reduce watering. Bushes are dug out from open ground after the leaves begin to fall, but the thermometer should not cross the zero mark even at night.
The ampelous fuchsias are trimmed by 1/3. Pick off the remaining leaves. Put away for storage.
Wintering on a northern windowsill is only suitable for young plants grown this season from cuttings or seeds. They should remain with the leaves unless they fall off on their own.
The rest of the fuchsias are sent to a frost-free basement, on a glazed balcony. Temperature:
- should not exceed 12° C;
- it is better if it ranges from 6 to 10 ° C;
- permissible minimum – plus 2° C;
- A short-term decrease to 0° C will not cause significant harm.
How to prune fuchsia correctly
This plant must be pruned regularly, as this procedure will allow the fuchsia to develop properly and produce many flowers.
You should pinch a flower for the first time as soon as the cuttings take root. The bush should be pruned in the spring, before it begins to produce buds. Throughout the summer, it is necessary to shorten only long branches, because they will please you with their flowering with the onset of autumn.
Fuchsia needs crown formation. To do this, all side stems must be cut off above 2-4 pairs of foliage. In order for the bush plant to acquire a standard form, fix the central trunk on a special support, completely getting rid of the side shoots.
Reproduction methods
Seed propagation is possible only when purchasing planting material in a store. But with a fairly complex process, the result usually does not correspond to the varietal description or the picture on the pack.
To collect your own seeds, you need to carry out hand pollination, since hummingbirds do not live in Russia. But from the seedlings something unattractive will grow.
Fuchsia does not reproduce by leaves.
To propagate the crop, root the tops of shoots 5-8 cm long with 2-3 pairs of leaves. One node should be in a light substrate or water, the other above the surface. The lower leaves are removed, too large ones are shortened by half.
Germination of cuttings is carried out:
- under film or glass cover;
- at high humidity;
- temperature close to 20° C;
- diffused light is needed.
As the roots grow, the fuchsia is replanted several times a season. Place 2-3 pieces in a permanent wide container so that the ampelous bush is thick and beautiful.
What does fuchsia look like?
You can find an ampelous, shrubby, and also tree-like plant.
Fuchsia ampelous
The branches of the flower are carefully bent, which allows them to form a beautiful crown. Fuchsia foliage is rich green. Oval leaves with a slightly pointed tip do not exceed about 5 cm in length.
The colors of the flowers can be in a variety of shades of white, pink, blue and purple. The flowers are bell-shaped.
You can also find plants with flowers that resemble dancing ballerinas in their shape. The flowers get this extravagant appearance thanks to their petals, which, emerging from the tubular corollas, resemble a dancer’s tutu, while the long stamens can be compared to the graceful and, at the same time, strong legs of a ballerina.
This plant is gaining more and more popularity and competes with flowers such as Saintpaulia and begonia. With the onset of summer, bright fuchsia decorating gardens can supplant the queen of flowers, the rose, and become the most beautiful plant in the flower garden.
Optimal temperature
In order for fuchsia not only to grow well, but also to form many inflorescences, it needs to be provided with an appropriate temperature regime . Favorable temperatures for it are + 20.. + 22 degrees Celsius during the day and + 16... + 18 degrees Celsius at night. If the ambient temperature is higher than recommended, the gardener runs the risk of not waiting for flowering, and may also encounter such an unpleasant phenomenon as dropping leaves. On particularly hot days, the plant requires additional moisture, for which it is recommended to spray with settled cool water.
Fuchsia begins to feel unwell even with good care if the temperature does not reach the recommended level. Therefore, in winter, to protect against cold weather, it is recommended to place polystyrene foam or a wooden plank under the pot.
Air humidity
Air humidity is required to be increased - up to 70%. This can be achieved by regular spraying or placing it next to a humidifier.
In summer, the plant can be given a warm shower a couple of times a week.
Spraying and showering are carried out early in the morning or in the evening. Even accidental exposure of wet leaves to sunlight on a hot summer day can cause sunburn.
When spraying a flowering plant, and especially when showering, avoid getting moisture on the flowers.
Even in winter, when watering of the flower is reduced, spraying does not stop.
Dry and hot air causes leaves to drop.
Magellanic fuchsia in the wild
