SNIPPETS
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SNIPPETS |
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It was interesting to read in a 1994 edition of Fuchsia Fanfare the following names of Fuchsias that are over 100 years old and still going strong - I wander if some of our exotic blooms now will survive that long. Bon Accord raised in 1861 different in that it hold its flowers erect. Tom West raised in 1853 small flowers are red and purple. Achievement raised in 1886 grows to a height of 60 cm. Display raised in 1881 good hardy pink. Lena raised in 1862 semi double also hardy I'm sure there are more.
March 2006. We have had water restrictions, extreme heat, wind and bacteria over the last 12 months and I have heard despondent growers say "You cannot grow good Fuchsias in the Western Cape!!" I would like to issue a challenge for the coming year but first lets answer the following questions
I am convinced that nothing will grow well unless studied eg I see a beautiful plant grown by one of our experts, I buy it and take it home expecting it to continue growing, maybe I throw in a bit of food now and again and then a few weeks down the line I see it is dead or dying and I throw up my hands and either blame the "expert" or say "I can't grow Fuchsias" WRONG would you leave your child to just grow without love and attention, would you let him starve, freeze, boil or blow away? I have realized that if I bring a plant into my area I must let it adapt, I must try to establish where it was growing, what it was fed and then gradually introduce it to my area. eg Here in Cape Town we all envy Jan's plants, he has a specific way of achieving his success, I do not have the confined growing area that he has nor the means to create same so I usually place an established plant in a spare room which overlooks my growing area, leave the windows open and over about a week gradually move the plant closer and closer to my growing area, I now no longer loose plants that I have obtained from Jan. Fuchsias seldom die over night so watch you plants, if they suddenly drop buds and leaves something has shocked them either sudden change of environment, excessive heat, etc etc. Move them, protect them, mist them EXPERIMENT and make a note of your findings - I guarantee that you will become enthralled and you will find yourself dreaming of all sorts of tricks to improve. I had a friend bring 10 small plants down from Beth Middleton some time ago - I lost them all now I'm ready to try again because I know now that Gauteng ( Johannesberg) has a very different climate and I need to take that into account when the plants arrive. I wander if Rescue Remedy would work? I quote from a BFS article 2001 by Arthur Phillips "When I started growing Fuchsias seriously, one of the things that I was told was that Fuchsias stopped growing if the temperature exceeded 21°C. This I have found to be true in general terms. Our very good friends John and Lyn Robson in Adelaide, South Australia regularly experience temperatures in the high 30's and 40's at their Fuchsia Nursery. But the Fuchsias keep growing so obviously they adapt to the prevailing growing conditions." He goes on to tell about a plant called Pixie growing well in the garden but suddenly died - his conclusion was that the upper sides of the leaves had adapted to the sun and although sometimes a little scorched were fine but after a day clearing the bed of weeds he had inadvertently moved the position of Pixie and the sun was now shining on the under side of the leaves - result plant could not cope. So my challenge for this year is, make up your mind to beat the odds and set a goal of producing at least three good plants and then let the club know how you feel about yourself and your plants. oh! and SHOW them to the world.
Lady Beth Nursery. The largest Fuchsia Nursery in South Africa is situated in Gauteng which is 1488 kilometers from us here in Cape Town, they have summer rainfall and very different temperatures. The nursery is run by Beth Middleton who recently paid us a visit and among other interesting information she gave us the good news that she is now happy to send plants to clubs and individuals throughout the country. This will be a fairly expensive exercise and should probably be undertaken by clubs ordering for several people at a time to make it economical. She now has a catalogue containing names and descriptions of some 600 Fuchsias. Beth may be contacted by phone on 011 7051439 or by email at ladybeth@telkomsa.net
SPACE: Very shortly after discovering Fuchsias space becomes a problem for many of us and we start rearranging our gardens, erecting shade cloth and so on then our plants thrive and suddenly the space we thought was adequate dwindles. I visited one of our clever members and was amazed at the innovative ways she has come up with to solve this problem, came home and immediately copied some of her ideas - take a look
My plants all stand on shelving made with wire mesh which is ideal for hanging the small pots thus saving space for the bigger ones to spread.
GROWING FUCHSIAS courtesy of West Australian Fuchsia Society.
If a cutting will not root, then try a younger better shoot If your plantlet will not grow, the temperature may be too low, When the leaves have that grey mould, the air is far too wet and cold. When we are past the winter's gloom, you cannot prune them back too soon. Do you suffer from the rust, then try a fungicidal dust If your growth is rather slow, Nitrogen will help them grow If they are growing rapidly, you can pinch them frequently When the days are getting longer, growth will also get much stronger When the flower buds do not come, its because we lack the sun Do the whites seem rather pink, best put them in the shade, I think If the branches hang down low, in a basket they should grow If you grow them as a shrub, they will also fill a tub When your trouble is white fly, keep the atmosphere less dry When the problem is red spider, they don't like the moisture either We all grow in different way, some in plastic, some in clay But if you get conditions right, they will fill you with delight If your joy from fuchsias is abundant, they will never, never be redundant.
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