This year I bought a couple of indoor fuchsia for the front porch
windowsill. Winter temps drop to about 10C which has no effect on existing 8
year old bougainvillea plant. The outdoor fuchsia in front and back gardens
have no problems surviving the hardest frosts.

I'm rather keen on this years' potted plants 'Swingtime' and 'Auntie Jinks'.
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In previous years I've had no luck with the potted. Any tips on longevity?
Maybe it's too difficult with the tender indoor types? Any thoughts and
thanks in anticipation.

On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 11:20:15 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:

This year I bought a couple of indoor fuchsia
I'm rather keen on this years' potted plants 'Swingtime' and 'Auntie Jinks'.

Hardy Fuchsia are only hardy if planted in the ground, (the root ball
is then insulated) so even a hardy fuchsia, and these are not,would be
at risk in a basket.
Tender fuchsia's can survive in an unheated greenhouse or porch with
care, unless we have a really harsh winter, such as 2010.
I would start in mid September,take off all leaves, these older
leaves will drop anyway, and by removing them you will avoid fungus
attack, the plants will grow within four weeks many small leaves,
these will survive the winter.
Now you need to protect the root ball, either buy the plants into a
bigger pot or wrap with fleece, (or both)
Now more fuchsia's die through neglect and lack water than the cold
during the winter, water very infrequently, maybe less than once a
month, but do not let it go bone dry.

Removing the leaves will make the plant look better, and cut down on
the water it needs.

If it gets really cold, another couple of layers of fleece will help,
but remove as soon as possible.

"Derek" wrote in message ...

On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 11:20:15 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:

This year I bought a couple of indoor fuchsia
I'm rather keen on this years' potted plants 'Swingtime' and 'Auntie
Jinks'.

Hardy Fuchsia are only hardy if planted in the ground, (the root ball
is then insulated) so even a hardy fuchsia, and these are not,would be
at risk in a basket.
Tender fuchsia's can survive in an unheated greenhouse or porch with
care, unless we have a really harsh winter, such as 2010.
I would start in mid September,take off all leaves, these older
leaves will drop anyway, and by removing them you will avoid fungus
attack, the plants will grow within four weeks many small leaves,
these will survive the winter.
Now you need to protect the root ball, either buy the plants into a
bigger pot or wrap with fleece, (or both)
Now more fuchsia's die through neglect and lack water than the cold
during the winter, water very infrequently, maybe less than once a
month, but do not let it go bone dry.

Removing the leaves will make the plant look better, and cut down on
the water it needs.

If it gets really cold, another couple of layers of fleece will help,
but remove as soon as possible.

Thanks Derek, the min temp in porch gets to about 10C in Winter. I didn't
realise you could water, so previous ones may have died of thirst.

On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 17:50:15 +0100, Derek wrote:

On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 11:20:15 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:

This year I bought a couple of indoor fuchsia
I'm rather keen on this years' potted plants 'Swingtime' and 'Auntie Jinks'.

Hardy Fuchsia are only hardy if planted in the ground, (the root ball
is then insulated) so even a hardy fuchsia, and these are not,would be
at risk in a basket.
Tender fuchsia's can survive in an unheated greenhouse or porch with
care, unless we have a really harsh winter, such as 2010.
I would start in mid September,take off all leaves, these older
leaves will drop anyway, and by removing them you will avoid fungus
attack, the plants will grow within four weeks many small leaves,
these will survive the winter.
Now you need to protect the root ball, either buy the plants into a
bigger pot or wrap with fleece, (or both)
Now more fuchsia's die through neglect and lack water than the cold
during the winter, water very infrequently, maybe less than once a
month, but do not let it go bone dry.

Removing the leaves will make the plant look better, and cut down on
the water it needs.

If it gets really cold, another couple of layers of fleece will help,
but remove as soon as possible.

Sorry. Not true. I have had hardy fuchsias both in the ground and in
hanging baskets for years. Sometimes I take the hanging baskets down as
they look unsightly, sometimes I forget. I have not last any for as long as
I remember. I am on Tyneside.
--
Jim S

On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 18:07:15 +0100, Bertie Doe wrote:

"Derek" wrote in message ...

On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 11:20:15 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:

This year I bought a couple of indoor fuchsia
I'm rather keen on this years' potted plants 'Swingtime' and 'Auntie
Jinks'.

Hardy Fuchsia are only hardy if planted in the ground, (the root ball
is then insulated) so even a hardy fuchsia, and these are not,would be
at risk in a basket.
Tender fuchsia's can survive in an unheated greenhouse or porch with
care, unless we have a really harsh winter, such as 2010.
I would start in mid September,take off all leaves, these older
leaves will drop anyway, and by removing them you will avoid fungus
attack, the plants will grow within four weeks many small leaves,
these will survive the winter.
Now you need to protect the root ball, either buy the plants into a
bigger pot or wrap with fleece, (or both)
Now more fuchsia's die through neglect and lack water than the cold
during the winter, water very infrequently, maybe less than once a
month, but do not let it go bone dry.

Removing the leaves will make the plant look better, and cut down on
the water it needs.

If it gets really cold, another couple of layers of fleece will help,
but remove as soon as possible.

Thanks Derek, the min temp in porch gets to about 10C in Winter. I didn't
realise you could water, so previous ones may have died of thirst.

NEVER let a fuchsia EVER dry out entirely. Hanging ones can dry, but on the
other hand you cannot overwater them.
--
Jim S

On 22/08/2017 17:50, Derek wrote:
On Tue, 22 Aug 2017 11:20:15 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:

This year I bought a couple of indoor fuchsia
I'm rather keen on this years' potted plants 'Swingtime' and 'Auntie Jinks'.

Hardy Fuchsia are only hardy if planted in the ground, (the root ball
is then insulated) so even a hardy fuchsia, and these are not,would be
at risk in a basket.
Tender fuchsia's can survive in an unheated greenhouse or porch with
care, unless we have a really harsh winter, such as 2010.

Trick is to take a few small cuttings off the ones you are fond of as
insurance and keep them going on a frost free windowsill in the house.
That way you can start again next year when it warms up.

I would start in mid September,take off all leaves, these older
leaves will drop anyway, and by removing them you will avoid fungus
attack, the plants will grow within four weeks many small leaves,
these will survive the winter.
Now you need to protect the root ball, either buy the plants into a
bigger pot or wrap with fleece, (or both)
Now more fuchsia's die through neglect and lack water than the cold
during the winter, water very infrequently, maybe less than once a
month, but do not let it go bone dry.

Removing the leaves will make the plant look better, and cut down on
the water it needs.

Recent winters have been mild enough in North Yorkshire that I have had
flowers on fuschias and pelargoniums as late as Xmas and had survivors
overwinter in situ albeit with a severe growth check and some die back.

If it gets really cold, another couple of layers of fleece will help,
but remove as soon as possible.

Never really tried with fuschias. Got caught out by an unexpected bad
overnight frost with a tree fern though and that killed it stone dead

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

"Derek" wrote in message ...

Now more fuchsia's die through neglect and lack water than the cold
during the winter, water very infrequently, maybe less than once a
month, but do not let it go bone dry.

I guess dryness has been the culprit in the past. Problem is, the £2
moisture probes you got in garden centres, had reliability problems. I think
they also measured Ph.

"Martin Brown" wrote in message news
Trick is to take a few small cuttings off the ones you are fond of as
insurance and keep them going on a frost free windowsill in the house. That
way you can start again next year when it warms up.

I've had good results with hydrangea cutting on the allotment coldframe but
no luck with fuchsia. Hydrangea stems are a bit more fleshy. The fuchsia
cuttings may have died from neglect. I'll try indoors on a windowsill.
Should I wait till they've stopped flowering?

On 23/08/2017 10:37, Bertie Doe wrote:


"Martin Brown"Â* wrote in message news
Trick is to take a few small cuttings off the ones you are fond of as
insurance and keep them going on a frost free windowsill in the house.
That way you can start again next year when it warms up.

I've had good results with hydrangea cutting on the allotment coldframe
but no luck with fuchsia. Hydrangea stems are a bit more fleshy. The
fuchsia cuttings may have died from neglect. I'll try indoors on a
windowsill. Should I wait till they've stopped flowering?

I try to find pieces without a flower bud. If you try and strike half a
dozen round the edge of a pot you should get a couple that take.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On Wed, 23 Aug 2017 00:05:55 +0100, Jim S wrote:

Hardy Fuchsia are only hardy if planted in the ground, (the root ball
is then insulated) so even a hardy fuchsia, and these are not,would be
at risk in a basket.

Sorry. Not true. I have had hardy fuchsias both in the ground and in
hanging baskets for years. Sometimes I take the hanging baskets down as
they look unsightly, sometimes I forget. I have not last any for as long as
I remember. I am on Tyneside.

The definition of a hardy Fuchsia, is one that has survived somewhere
in the UK for 5 years when planted in the ground.
Those of us in the Fuchsia Society knows that many 'tender ones ' will
survive in the ground through a mild winter, ie those of the last six
years
To guarantee a hardie surving in the UK, through a harsh winter, ie
2010, the root ball must be well insulated, four inches minimum of
earth around it. So that one planted outside in the ground, should
survive, one in a pot may not.
Of course you can be lucky, but the poster wanted to know the 'best
way'


Derek, Lincoln and District, Fuchsia Society

On Wed, 23 Aug 2017 00:07:45 +0100, Jim S wrote:


NEVER let a fuchsia EVER dry out entirely. Hanging ones can dry, but on the
other hand you cannot overwater them.

True in the summer, but a basket watered and then frozen during the
night, will suffer, keeping the basket on the dry side, during the
winter, but not bone dry will keep it warmer.

I'll try indoors on a windowsill.
Should I wait till they've stopped flowering?

I have started taking cuttings now :-)

Yes they are in flower, and yes, the books say take a cutting from a
non flowering shoot, but take some now, take some later! We will be
taking cuttings from now till October

On Wed, 23 Aug 2017 10:28:39 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:


I guess dryness has been the culprit in the past. Problem is, the £2
moisture probes you got in garden centres, had reliability problems. I think
they also measured Ph.

Pick up the pot, a dry pot weighs a darn sight less, you will get to
know which ones need watering, the top can be dry, but the pot may not
need watering, as the roots have enough water.

"Derek" wrote in message ...
To guarantee a hardie surving in the UK, through a harsh winter, ie
2010, the root ball must be well insulated, four inches minimum of
earth around it. So that one planted outside in the ground, should
survive, one in a pot may not.
Of course you can be lucky, but the poster wanted to know the 'best
way'

Although we're in SE Cornwall, we're 5 miles inland and 500' amsl and east
facing. The 2010 winter killed our 5 year old wisteria, 4 consecutive nights
below minus 5C. 4 outdoor hardy fuchsias survive to this day.

The pot fuchsias in question are in an east facing porch which only gets
down to 10C / 50F in Winter. So I'll move them to a bedroom window, keep
them slightly moist and also take Derek's advice and plant cuttings around
the edge of some spare pots.

Thanks for all your tips. Hopefully Auntie Jinks and Swingtime will live to
a ripe old age.

"Derek" wrote in message ...

On Wed, 23 Aug 2017 10:28:39 +0100, "Bertie Doe"
wrote:


I guess dryness has been the culprit in the past. Problem is, the £2
moisture probes you got in garden centres, had reliability problems. I
think
they also measured Ph.

Pick up the pot, a dry pot weighs a darn sight less, you will get to
know which ones need watering, the top can be dry, but the pot may not
need watering, as the roots have enough water.

That's a good idea. In fact I'll weigh the pot on day 1 and thereafter at
say, weekly intervals.