Fuchsia's - the end of the season

I love to grow Fuchsia's and have about 60 different varieties. A drop in the ocean, but with 2 or 3 plants of each variety, as much as I have space and time for. We will soon be getting our first frosts and so it is time to lift them all up, put them into pots, and take them into the comparative safety of my greenhouse.

Regrettably, the process of lifting them will set them back and most of them will lose their flowers and foliage. To avoid large amounts of dead and rotting leaves in the greenhouse it is best to defoliate the plants first, and this is an excellent opportunity to prune them back into a nice shape. It is a hard job taking a plant full of flowers and reducing it to little more than a woody framework but it is essential for its survival.

Because what gets pruned off is going to be thrown away, this also makes it an excellent time to take some cuttings. In my experience cuttings don't take quite so easily this time of year, but since there is no shortage of cuttings material, there is nothing to lose in trying some. For anyone not familiar with how to take Fuchsia cuttings I have some instructions, with photo's, on my web site.

How to take Fuchsia cuttings

Also see:-

How to over-winter Fuchsia's

How to keep your Fuchsia's bushy