Indoor fuchsia: growing and care at home

Fuchsia (Fuchsia) is a genus of perennial plants from the fireweed family, consisting of approximately 100 species. The culture is mostly hybrids. Valued for its lush, abundant, long-lasting flowering. Attracts attention with bright, often contrasting, bent sepals and petals collected in a tubular corolla. Apart from the dormant period, caring for fuchsia is not too difficult for experienced gardeners. Beginners should remember that the plant is capricious, requires attention, and reacts quickly to any mistake.

What to do with a flower after purchase

It is unknown in what conditions the fuchsia was kept; it needs not only quarantine, but also a period of adaptation to the new place. The pot is placed separately from the main collection on a northern windowsill or in partial shade if it is hot, often sprayed, and watered carefully.

The main thing you need to keep an eye on is whether you brought a whitefly from the store. But a delicate plant may also have fungal diseases, which will certainly manifest themselves within 2 weeks as dark spots on the leaves.

After adaptation, they look to see if the fuchsia needs to be transplanted into another pot. If the earthen ball is completely entwined with roots, it is transferred to a slightly larger container, even if it is in bloom. The soil cannot be replaced at this time, except in extreme cases when it comes to saving the plant. Then all the buds are removed.

Home care

No matter what they write in reference books or on the Internet, fuchsia requires increased attention from its owners. But beginning gardeners can also grow it if they choose a simpler variety. The main thing is that caring for fuchsia should be regular, and it is necessary to study the characteristics of the plant before purchasing, and not when problems begin.

Temperature and lighting

The culture can withstand partial shade, although it blooms worse there. Ideally, fuchsia needs bright, soft light, but direct rays are only permissible in the morning or evening. The southern window sill is not suitable for the plant during the active growing season; it is better to place the pot on the western, eastern, or, in extreme cases, northern.

If fuchsia spends the rest period (wintering) in a living room, choose a bright place for it.

The plant is afraid of overheating, but feels good in the cool:

• outdoors in summer;
• in winter at home it can stand on a glassed-in balcony.

Regarding the acceptable temperature, the opinions of Dutch gardeners and domestic flower growers differ:

1. The first claim that during the dormant period, growing fuchsia should take place at 6-10° C; in summer, no more than 20° C is permissible.
2. Our compatriots indicate a range from 2-6° C to 24° C, respectively.

Both are right. It all depends on whether we are talking about a greenhouse plant purchased in a store, or a fuchsia propagated by cuttings and adapted to a specific content.

Growing and caring for them at home in summer will not be so difficult if you install a humidifier and keep the air conditioner on. You can place a pot of fuchsia in a large pot, fill the gap with expanded clay, sphagnum or soil - this will protect the root from overheating.

Shady areas are usually cooler. But if the plant lacks light, fewer buds are formed, the internodes are stretched out, and the bush becomes loose and lethargic. The owners will have to find the right balance on their own - so that the temperature is as low as possible, but there is enough sun. Otherwise, they will see the bush in full bloom only in the fall.

Watering and air humidity

Caring for fuchsia at home requires very careful irrigation. A delicate plant can die from stagnation of water in a few hours; it’s good if the owners manage to take cuttings.

The literature recommends that in spring or summer the soil should always remain slightly moist. Just in case, practicing gardeners dry the surface of the earthen ball a little, but by a few millimeters, and not 2-3 cm, as for other plants.

Use warm, settled water. Excess liquid from the pan must be removed after 30-40 minutes.

During the dormant period, the fuchsia watering regime changes. If the plant overwinters on a windowsill, the earthen ball is moistened regularly, but much less often than in spring or summer.

The approximate frequency of watering during warm wintering is once a week. But you need to focus on your own conditions:

• has the fuchsia shed its leaves for the winter;
• room temperature;
• dry or humid air in the room;
• whether there are buds on the bush or not.

When fuchsia is taken out onto a glazed balcony, into a frost-free basement or cellar, the substrate is watered extremely rarely, just so that the lump does not dry out completely.

Air humidity during the growing season needs to be high. In summer, the plant is sprayed twice a day - early in the morning and when the sun begins to set. If you do this in the middle of the day, the water droplets will turn into lenses and unsightly burns will appear on the leaves and flowers. At night, the temperature can drop significantly, especially in the off-season, then the delicate fuchsia that remains wet after sunset can rot.

After flowering and until mid-November, spraying is done in the first half of the day, periodically. In winter they are stopped.

Feeding schedule

Fuchsia grown as a houseplant is fertilized only with store-bought preparations. Authoritative sources advise alternating the mineral complex with organic matter, but we are not talking about mullein infusion, bird droppings or other homemade remedies.

For abundant flowering or growth, fuchsia needs to be fed every 1-2 weeks, depending on the preparation, in moist soil. Be sure to follow the instructions:

• if there is a deficiency of nutrients, buds will not appear on the plant;
• due to the excess, rapid development of green mass will begin, existing flowers will quickly fade or fall off, new ones will not emerge.

In winter, the crop is not fertilized, otherwise the plant may die.

Trimming and pinching

Fuchsia buds form at the ends of the shoots - the more side branches, the more abundantly it will bloom. Ampelous species and varieties will never cascade without formation; bush varieties grow one-sided, liquid, elongated.

Before the cutting blooms for the first time, it is pinched:

• I time - over the second pair of leaves;
• II – when the lateral branches grow, just above the 2-3rd internode;
• III - the same for tall bush varieties.

You can shape fuchsia with your fingernails, nail scissors, or tweezers with curved tips.

The grown cut shoots are used for propagation. To make the plant produce buds faster, pinch the top pair of leaves from a very small cutting.

Pruning fuchsia at home must be carried out before the dormant period. The operation is performed after flowering, at the end of October or November. If buds continue to form, you need to wait longer. Shoots are shortened by no more than a third.

The main pruning of an adult plant is carried out in the spring:

• the crown is lightened - shoots directed inwards are removed;
• of the intersecting branches, the strongest is left;
• the stems of the ampels are shortened by a third;
• pinch all the shoots on the bushes.

Indoor fuchsia can be formed like a standard tree. This takes approximately 3 years:

1. Select a strong branch on the plant.
2. Tie it to a vertical support at each internode.
3. Gradually cut out the lower shoots and remove the leaves on the stem.
4. The tops on the stem are plucked out as soon as they appear.
5. A crown of 3-7 skeletal branches is formed at the top.
6. To make fuchsia lush, pinch out the side shoots, leaving 2-3 internodes on each.

What to do in the fall

In the fall, you need to prepare the plant for winter dormancy. To do this, from September you need to gradually reduce watering. By the time frost sets in, fuchsia should be dry. Stop giving fertilizer so that the plant begins to shed all its greenery and flowers. Move the fuchsia to a place where the light is much weaker.

If suddenly the room is too dark, then simply turn on the incandescent lamp for several hours every day. It won't be hard work.

To ensure that the plant is fully prepared for hibernation, move it to the balcony or basement. There, fuchsia should be kept at a temperature of no more than fourteen degrees Celsius.

Features of seasonal care

When growing fuchsia at home, the maintenance depends on the time of year. From spring until the end of flowering, care is usual; in the fall, adult specimens with lignified shoots begin to fall. If cool conditions are not provided in winter, the plant may die, or become very elongated and weakened, and will only be suitable for propagating fuchsia by cuttings in the spring.

Care during the flowering period

It is easier to grow a crop on the street or balcony; the bush will be much more beautiful there than in a stuffy room. Fuchsia develops faster in the fresh air, holds buds longer and puts out buds more readily.

During the active growing season, the plant:

• water regularly, not allowing the soil to dry out;
• to prolong flowering, remove faded buds;
• spray frequently, in hot weather - twice a day, morning and evening;
• feed at least once every 2 weeks;
• Every year the plant is replanted and pruned in the spring;
• young shoots are pinched all season long;
• kept in a bright room, protected from direct rays at midday;
• in summer the temperature is not allowed to rise above 24° C.

During flowering, fuchsia is protected from drafts. It is not recommended to move the pot, turn it, or pick it up, otherwise the plant will drop its buds.

Care during the rest period

Even experienced gardeners can die from fuchsia in the winter. In order for the bush to survive an unfavorable period more easily, it needs to be prepared. After flowering:

• no longer fed;
• stop spraying;
• gradually reduce, and by the end of November, reduce watering to a minimum;
• do light pruning;
• for preventive purposes they are treated against pests.

If the plant produces buds when it is supposed to rest, they are cut off so as not to deplete the bush.

Young specimens should overwinter on a bright, cool windowsill or insulated balcony. The recommended temperature is not higher than 12° C, preferably 6-10° C.

Fuchsias with mature, lignified branches can stand in a frost-free cellar or basement without light, but their leaves should be torn off. There the temperature should be about 2° C, not fall below 0° C. Just in case, the pots can be placed in boxes with sawdust.

Popular types and varieties with photos

There are about 100 species of this plant in nature. Most of them are suitable for growing at home. Breeders have also developed many different varieties, the flowers of which differ in shape and shade.

Graceful

In nature, graceful fuchsia can reach 3 meters in height, but in indoor conditions it is rarely higher than 1 m

This tall variety has beautiful large flowers. Fuchsia graceful blooms from spring to autumn.

Shining

Fuchsia radiant is a small shrub with purple flowers.

Fuchsia radiant, or shiny, is distinguished by purple-green leaves with pointed edges and crimson flowers with a crimson tint. With proper care, the plant will delight with lush and continuous flowering until the onset of cold weather.

Magellan

As a rule, Magellanic fuchsia flowers are collected in inflorescences

Fuchsia Magellanica is an evergreen shrub with large flowers, which can be single or collected in inflorescences of 4 pieces.

Blue Angel

Fuchsia Blue Angel looks especially impressive in wicker plant pots or elegant hanging baskets

One of the most popular forms of fuchsia is ampelous. The Blue Angel variety with double lilac flowers on snow-white sepals looks attractive in hanging flowerpots.

How to properly transplant an adult plant

Fuchsia is moved to a new pot every year. This is done at the beginning of the growing season, immediately after spring pruning. If necessary, you can even transfer a flowering bush into a large bowl, the main thing is not to destroy the earthen lump.

Priming

Fuchsia requires slightly acidic soil, loose and permeable. It is important that it maintains its structure well throughout the year and does not become compacted - even a single stagnation of water in a pot will most likely lead to the death of the plant in a few hours. Mixtures intended for geraniums or Usambara violets are suitable from store-bought substrates.

You can prepare the soil yourself from pre-disinfected components taken in equal proportions:

• turf land;
• rotted litter of deciduous trees;
• humus;
• high peat;
• sand.

Pieces of charcoal will not interfere with the mixture. The minimum volume of substrate for 1 adult bush is 1 liter.

Pot

You cannot grow fuchsia beautiful and healthy in the wrong container. If the pot is too large, the plant:

• stops developing;
• refuses to branch;
• sick;
• withers;
• some of the leaves turn yellow, dry out, fall off;
• does not bloom;
• the buds fall off.

The diameter of the new container is needed 2-3 cm larger than the previous one. At least 20% of the volume should be drainage. If the owners have chosen a beautiful designer high pot for planting the ampel, the “excess” space is also covered with expanded clay.

It is recommended to plant not 1, but several cuttings in bowls. Otherwise, the soil on the sides will not be absorbed by the roots, which will lead to acidification of the substrate, plus it will delay flowering for several weeks.

The best material is plastic. Clay breathes well and protects the root from overheating, but ceramic pots often only have one small drainage hole, which is unacceptable for fuchsia. You can place the plant in a regular shipping container and then decorate it with a flower pot.

Fuchsia transplant

Despite its capricious nature, you can move a flowering plant into a new pot. Time limits:

• dormant period – growth processes slow down, restoration of the root system takes a long time;
• heat - fuchsia is very sensitive to overheating, if you add stress from replanting, it can die.

In spring, the crop quickly recovers and reproduces well. You don't have to throw away the cut branches.

Transplant process:

1. Pour drainage and some fresh substrate into the new pot.
2. Remove the fuchsia from the old container.
3. Inspect the earthen lump. Trim the root if necessary.
4. Place the plant at its original height in the center of the new container.
5. Fill the empty space with substrate.
6. Compact, water.

It is necessary to cover the bush with glass or film only when the earthen clod is destroyed. The transplanted plant is placed in partial shade for several days.

Methods of propagation and rooting

Vegetative propagation of fuchsia should not be difficult even for beginners. Hybrids can be propagated with seeds only if they are obtained from reliable producers; those collected with one’s own hands will produce flowers that do not inherit varietal characteristics.

Leaves

Sometimes on the Internet there is a statement: it is possible to grow fuchsia from a leaf, which is not true. And the authors themselves indicate: along with the plate, you should take a bud and a piece of stem. This is already propagation by cuttings with one node, and not a leaf.

Seeds

Planting material must be purchased at the store. You can propagate species plants yourself this way. But pollination on indoor fuchsias will have to be done manually - with a cotton swab or a soft brush.

First, the seeds are pickled in a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate, then sown in a peat-sand mixture. Cover with glass and keep at 20-25°C and high humidity. Seedlings dive in the phase of 2 true leaves.

The method is unreliable - it depends on the quality of the seeds, subsequent care, and propagation often ends in failure.

Cuttings

The tops of shoots of 5-8 cm with at least 2 internodes take root best. Longer ones may have their growing point dry out, short ones rot easily.

The cuttings remaining after trimming the fuchsia are freed from the lower leaves; if the upper ones are too large, the plates are shortened by half. One node should be in water or wet sand, the second should rise above their surface. The planting material is covered with glass or transparent film.

With high humidity, diffuse light and a temperature of about 20 ° C in early spring, rooting will take about two weeks.

Fuchsia can be propagated in the summer, but in the heat, growth processes are suspended. The cutting may rot.

Planting fuchsia

When the apical shoot takes root 1-2 cm long, it needs to be planted in a plastic cup filled with soil with a hole at the bottom. The substrate should be light so that the roots grow well in search of food.

Make a hole in the soil of a size large enough to insert the cutting without disturbing the lower shoots, sprinkle it, press it down and water it. During the season, at least 2-3 transplants into a large container will be required.

Ampels are sometimes immediately planted with several cuttings of different varieties in a common flat pot.

Fuchsia is moved to a bright place, but protected from direct sun. If the cuttings were previously under film, young plants are gradually accustomed to fresh air.

Fuchsia propagation rules

There are two methods for obtaining new fuchsias: seed and cuttings.

Seeds

This is a rather labor-intensive process, which, as a rule, does not preserve the individuality of the mother flower. Seeds are sown in early spring:

• Since they are very small, they are mixed with sand and scattered on the surface of the soil.
• Sprinkle with a small amount of substrate.
• Cover with film or glass.
• Maintain temperature +15…+18 °C. Water into a tray.
• Sprouts appear within a month.
• When two sheets are formed, they are picked.

Vegetative

Old or young shoots (about 10 cm) are used as cuttings, which are cut at the end of winter:

• The lower leaves are removed. The cuttings are placed in a glass with water, liquid substrate or sand.
• Create a mini-greenhouse using a plastic container or bag.
• After 2 weeks, when roots appear, the cuttings are replanted.

Diseases and pests

Rarely does anyone succeed in caring for fuchsia at home without encountering whiteflies. Beginning gardeners, or those who are not ready to constantly fight an annoying insect, often give up and get rid of the plant.

It is much easier to control whiteflies in open ground than at home, in a greenhouse or winter garden.

Other pests that may appear on fuchsia include:

• spider mite;
• aphid;
• thrips;
• nematode;
• mealybug.

Before the dormant period, fuchsias must undergo preventive treatment against pests.

The plant is sick:

• fusarium;
• various spots;
• root and stem rot;
• rust.

The culture does not respond well to treatment, since all the vegetative organs of the plant are very delicate, the flower disappears quickly. Pests are controlled with insecticides, and diseases are eliminated by spraying the bush with fungicides.

Trimming and pinching

Delicate beautiful buds appear on young peduncles. In order for their number to increase, it is necessary to regularly trim the plant, forming its crown, and pinch out young shoots. It is believed that timely pinching is the key to abundant flowering of the plant. In addition, with the help of pruning, you can give the crop a well-groomed appearance. As you already understood, one of the features of the fuchsia plant is that it grows up to 3 meters in height. Considering that the crop is most often placed in houses and other premises, it becomes impractical to grow it to such a size. And at this moment pruning comes to the rescue.

The procedure is carried out twice a year: at the beginning of winter, and also in October, after flowering. During autumn pruning, you should remove faded flowers so that the cut is 2 cm away from the dormant buds. After a thorough inspection of the plant, diseased branches, damaged shoots and old peduncles are removed. If you find harmful insects, the crop is treated with insecticides.

The second pruning is carried out in January. It is at this time that the crown of the plant is formed. In the spring you need to inspect the plant again. If it was in a cool place in winter, then you will only need to remove the damaged shoots. If it overwintered in some room, then carry out a third pruning using garden shears, removing weak branches.

Regular pruning is required to keep fuchsias growing beautifully. A flower, the care of which involves pinching and forming a bush, needs this procedure. The culture will grow not in height, but in width. The main thing is not to spare old peduncles and woody shoots, since they practically do not bloom, but consume nutrients in full.

Problems during cultivation

The larger the fuchsia flowers, the more capricious the plant. Beginning flower growers are not recommended to choose the most beautiful variety in the catalog; it is better to start with something simpler. Then there will be less disappointment in culture.

When growing fuchsia, owners often encounter problems:

• many lower leaves wither and fall off at once - drying out of the substrate;
• buds fall off, plates fly around regardless of location on the bush - heat;
• shoots stretch out, no flowering - insufficient lighting;
• fuchsia buds do not last long - the winter is too warm or there is a lack of nutrients;
• the plates wither and the soil is wet - overflow;
• the plant suddenly drops its flowers - perhaps the pot was rearranged or moved.