More Hardy Fuchsias

Day 302: I have to admit that I've fallen in love with hardy fuchsias and wouldn't mind populating my entire yard with them, but then, nobody else would have any hummingbirds. I haven't had a clear look yet, but I think I may have Anna's visiting Dollar Princess (center). If so, it would be the first time Anna's have come to my yard. In a recent post, I mentioned that some hardy fuchsia varieties bear an edible berry. Riccartonii (left) is one of those, as is Genii, which is very similar in appearance. The berries are juicy ovals, and although not particularly flavourful, they are lightly perfumed and I think they would go nicely as an addition to jelly in much the same way as rose petals or scented violets do. I plan to collect the fruit this year as an experiment. The larger-flowered varieties don't seem to produce as abundantly. I have never had berries on Erecta (right) and very few on the others. Currently, my garden hosts seven varieties, The seventh, Dutch Pearl, has not yet come into bloom.

Hardy Fuchsias For The Perennial Garden

Day 297: You can't beat hardy Fuchsias for putting on a show in the garden! Like their annual cousins, they are prolific bloomers and attract hummingbirds by the dozen. Their growth habit is shrubby, woody stems rising three feet or more from ground level in some cases, with blossoms more widely spaced on the stalks than those of the annual varieties. They are deciduous, losing their leaves in the fall (a factor which makes them undesirable to some people), but in the spring, new shoots emerge from the soil, and will be followed somewhat later by the emergence of leaves on the old stems if they haven't been pruned back. I prefer to let mine sprawl until they start to look weedy. Then an autumn "haircut" puts them back in order. A wide variety of colour combinations are available, but pay attention to the hardiness rating and plant according to your zone. As a general rule, the lighter the colour, the less hardy the plant. From left to right, top to bottom: Army Nurse, Erecta (hardy in Zone 7 with some protection), Dollar Princess, Genii and Riccartonii. Both the small-flowered varieties shown here produce an edible oblong purple berry which can be added to fruit salads for visual interest, although the taste is rather bland if eaten directly from the plant.

Fuchsia Fantasy

Day 319: Until a few years ago, the only "hardy fuchsia" I had ever seen was a small-flowered, shrubby variety, fairly common in Pacific Northwest yards. In the interest of keeping my hummingbirds amused, I set about trying to find a commercial supplier and thus discovered that quite a few of the "hardies" bear flowers equal in size to those of the annuals seen in hanging baskets. Over time, I accumulated five varieties: (top to bottom, left to right) Army Nurse, Dollar Princess, Genii, Erecta and Riccartonii. My choices were governed by the degree of hardiness which varies by species; all of these can withstand winter temperatures of 0° or lower. Of the five, pink Erecta has proved to be the most susceptible to cold. It died back and did not sprout foliage on the old wood as the others did, but re-emerged rather late from the ground. This summer, I was surprised at seeing fuchsia berries on two plants. The fruits are reported to be edible but not particularly desirable unless you are growing one of the varieties specifically developed for taste. In that case it is said that they make a delicious jelly. Testing is in order, yes.