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Fuchsias are best known as tender plants for summer patio pots and baskets, but there are also hardy varieties that can grow in borders outdoors all year round.
There are both upright and trailing forms – and hundreds of varieties. They can't go out until the danger of the frost has passed in mid- to late May, so you'll need a frost-free place, such as a greenhouse, to raise them.
Which? Gardening magazine grew a range of popular varieties to find out which are the best.
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PLANT TYPE Half-hardy or hardy shrub
POSITION Sun or partial shade
SOIL Use a Best Buy compost for containers
January | February | March | April | May | June |
PLANT/PRUNE | PLANT/MOVE OUTSIDE | FLOWERING | |||
July | August | September | October | November | December |
FLOWERING | FLOWERING | FLOWERING | FLOWERING/MOVE INDOORS |
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Variety name | Overall rating | Flowering duration | Flower impact | Display | Shape | Foliage | Weather resistance | Pests & diseases |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
'Annabel' | ||||||||
'Bella Rosella' | ||||||||
'Blue Angel' | ||||||||
'Dancing Flame' | ||||||||
'Dark Eyes' | ||||||||
'Lady in Red' | ||||||||
'Lauren' |
The more stars the better. Overall rating Ignores prices and is based on: flowering duration 30%; flower impact 20%; display (amount of flower) 20%; shape of plant 15%; foliage 5%; weather resistance 5%; pests and diseases 5%.
Variety name | Overall rating | Flowering duration | Flower impact | Display | Shape | Foliage | Weather resistance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
'Abbe Farges' | |||||||
'Adinda' | |||||||
'Alan Titchmarsh' | |||||||
'Billy Green' | |||||||
'Checkerboard' | |||||||
'Patio Fairy Cherry' | |||||||
'Snowcap' |
The more stars the better. Overall rating Ignores price and is based on: flowering duration 20%; flower impact 20%; display (amount of flower) 30%; shape of plant 10%; foliage 10%; weather resistance 10%.
Variety name | Overall rating | Flower duration | Flower impact | Flower coverage | Plant shape | Pest & disease resistance | Hardiness in north London | Hardiness in Scotland |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
'Army Nurse' | ||||||||
'Bernisser Hardy' | ||||||||
'Dollar Princess' | ||||||||
'Edith' | ||||||||
'Garden News' | ||||||||
'Genii' | ||||||||
'Hawkshead' |
Using the table Ratings in the table are from the second year of the trial. Hardiness rating * = all plants died; ** = 2 plants died; *** = 1 plant died; **** = all alive, but not all flowered; ***** = all alive and all flowered. Overall rating Ignores price and is based on: flower impact 20%, flower coverage 20%, hardiness at both sites combined 20%, flower duration 15%, plant shape 15%, pest and disease resistance 10%.
Pay £36.75 for the first year and get the garden you want for less
Get this offerPlant your tender fuchsias in a Best Buy compost for containers mixed with a Best Buy controlled-release fertiliser. Put three plants in a 40cm hanging basket. Water in, then keep the compost moist but not waterlogged. Put the basket outside once the danger of frost has passed, in mid- to late May. Although fuchsias will tolerate sun, they prefer partial shade, especially during the hottest parts of the day in summer.
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Hardy fuchsias should be planted outside in late spring or early summer, so they establish well before the first frosts. It’s best to grow on plugs or small plants in a Best Buy compost for raising young plants so that the roots fill a pot of at least 9cm diameter before you do this.
When it comes to planting out, put them in slightly deeper (1.5-2.5cm) than the soil line of the pot, as this will help to protect them from the cold in winter. Fuchsias need a spot in sun or partial shade, and soil that is well drained but doesn’t dry out too readily in summer.
If you don't have a greenhouse already, read our selection of best pop-up greenhouses
If your young plants are leggy, pinch out the growing tips after two or three pairs of leaves have formed. This will stimulate sideshoots to grow.
Remove the flowers as they fade to encourage the plant to produce more.
Feed with a Best Buy tomato feed from the end of summer, or earlier if the leaves on your fuchsia become pale.
It’s very easy to take cuttings from fuchsias. Using clean secateurs, cut the stem to just above the point where a leaf joins the stem, to take a cutting that's 5-10cm long. Trim it to just under the point where the leaf joins the stem. Remove the lower leaves, so you have just one pair of leaves at the top. Try to take cuttings from stems that haven’t developed buds; if there are buds already, then remove them. Place the cuttings in pots of Best Buy compost for raising young plants. You can overwinter your cuttings on a bright windowsill or in a greenhouse that stays above 7°C.
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The majority of trailing fuchsias are tender, so if you want to overwinter them, they need to be kept in a frost-free space with plenty of light, such as a heated greenhouse. It’s best to take cuttings as insurance, too.
Read our guide on how to buy the best greenhouse
A mulch of straw or well-rotted compost around the base of the plant in late autumn may help it survive winter. Leaving woody growth on the plant over winter will offer frost protection, too. When the plant starts to regrow in spring, cut it back hard to around 10-15cm above ground level to encourage new growth.
Make your own compost with a Best Buy compost bin
The first signs of this disease are yellowing leaves, with red pustules on the undersides. To treat it, remove affected leaves or spray with a suitable fungicide. Remember, fuchsias can be damaged by fungicide, so test by only spraying a few leaves first.
This is a microscopic mite and because you can barely see it, the first sign you'll get of its presence is the damage it causes – this is a reddening of the leaves and particularly the shoot tips. The mites feed on leaves and flowers, causing them to become grossly distorted. They look pale green and felt-like at first, then reddening with age, and the plant will soon stop growing.
Unfortunately, it's very hard to control fuchsia gall mite as the mites hide within the distorted parts of the plant. The best way is to destroy the affected plant by digging it up and burning it, then starting all over again with fresh plants.
If you're loathe to lose the plant, you could try cutting off all the green material and burning that. Hopefully the new growth will be clean.
Squash any greenfly that appear on your plants before they can weaken growth by sucking the sap.
We grew a number of hardy varieties at both our Which? Gardening magazine trial garden at Capel Manor College, north London, where the soil is well drained and rainfall relatively light, and in Greenbank Garden, Glasgow, where the soil is heavy clay, rainfall is heavy and winters are consistently colder than in the south. We grew them for two years.
For the tender fuchsias, we grew a number of varieties in hanging baskets at Capel Manor and assessed them over summer.