If your fuchsias aren’t all what they’re cracked up to be, full of flowers with nary a leaf to be seen, then perhaps you haven’t taken care of them properly.
Of course, fuchsias look bedraggled at the end of summer, but these are not a plop-and-grow plants. If anything, they fall in the fiddly class. To get them covered in those fairy-like blooms, you need a pinch-and-feed routine that starts now.
Fuchsias bloom on new wood. So in order to get lots of new wood growing on your plants, a hard cut-back followed by frequent pinching induces plenty of blooming growth by spring.
Begin reviving a worn-out fuchsia by cutting it back to half its size, said fuchsia expert Ted Mayeda at M & M Nursery in Orange. Everything goes: branches, leaves, and existing flowers.
After summer’s heat, “now is the time to just let them get branching and bushy,” he said as they begin to grow again in cooler weather.
While you’re busy beating up your plant, think about replacing last year’s potting soil that is probably a bit too high in salts after a season’s worth of municipal water.
Knock out as much potting soil as you can and replace it with an acidic azalea mix.
Soak your fuchsia well, and then hang it in a semi-shady location to recover. In mild coastal climates, it will spring back with new growth right away.
Further inland where temps are cold and frost is possible, your fuchsia may not put on much new growth until early spring. Be sure your plant is protected from frost at all times, yet try and choose a place with dappled light or part sun where it can spend the winter.
Begin feeding in February with a balanced fertilizer with numbers such as 10-10-10 or 20-20-20. Fuchsias need to be fed once a month through August.
Once new growth begins in earnest, your job is to begin to pinch. Pinching may seem counter-productive, but remember that the more you pinch, the more flowers you’ll get.
Every pinched branch produces two in its place, and so on. Keep pinching until April, if you can stand it.� The more you pinch, the more branches will develop when at last your plant is covered in well-branched and leafy growth.
Stop pinching in April and let your plant finally bloom. Be sure to deadhead old blossoms that may be trying to make seed, as these will drain energy from the plant.
Wha-la! You’ll have plant that looks just the way it was supposed to.
Contact the writer: cmcnatt@ocregister.com
