Re: Hardy fuchsias in Mediterranean climate

Kim Munyer wrote:
I live in Sacramento, CA. The summers are sometimes scorching here and my hardy fucshias do fine. I have some planted in the ground and some in pots. As long as you keep them slightly shaded and dont let them dry out, they should do just fine.
----- Original Message -----
From: Pamela Steele <p*@nznf.co.uk>
To: Medit-Plants <m*@ucdavis.edu>
Sent: Sunday, May 01, 2005 1:04 AM
Subject: Hardy fushcias in Mediterranean climate

A friend is wanting to bring some 'hardy' potted fuschias from Scotland to the Costa Blanca. She is worried that they won't survive here. Does anyone know about the chance of their success of acclimatisation on a Spanish patio.?
The limiting factor for growing fuchsias on the Costa Blanca would be I am sure not so much winter hardiness as lack of humidity. Many of the cultivars with blue and blue-reds and pinks in their makeup are I suspect related to F magellenica and have no trouble with surviving a few degrees of frost. If they are hardy in Scotland I doubt they would anyway be troubled by winter in coastal Spain. In my area, which has just a few degrees of winter frost, these kinds may may be partly or wholly deciduous, but do not die down and leaf up again happily in the spring, benefiting from a good pruning just before they break.

The ones which will not survive outdoors here are those with any hint of orange or orange-red colours. I presume they are related to one of the more tender species. I have these in pots and take them into shelter during winter.

Dryness is something though that fuchsias will simply not tolerate. They rapidly get woody, drop leaves, or fall victim to mite or thrips. Our problem here is not so much general low air humidity in summer as persistant drying winds. For this reason I long ago gave up trying to grow fuchsias in hanging baskets outdoors and limit my outdoor container plants to a few sheltered and shady locations. Pots though, even large ones, can be a problem to keep sufficiently moist and in the height of summer certainly need daily watering and greatly benefit from the addition of agents to aid water penetration and retention..

The most trouble-free individuals are those planted in shady borders provided they are kept evenly moist (moisture retention is much helped by a deep surface mulch).

Moira

Tony & Moira Ryan,
Wainuiomata, North Island, NZ. Pictures of our garden at:-
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/cherie1/Garden/TonyandMoira/index.htm
NEW PICTURES AND DIAGRAMS ADDED 20/Feb/2005

Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index