Hardy Beauty

Day 292: Given the wide variety of hardy Fuchsias available, I find it hard to imagine why anyone with garden space would bother with the annuals. Even with winter temperatures here dropping into single digits almost every year, all but one of mine have survived with no mulching or additional protection. While the types with smaller, slender flowers are what most people think of when you say "hardy Fuchsia" (assuming that they don't respond immediately with, "There's no such thing!"), the large-flowered cultivars offer a range of colour combinations equal to that of their annual cousins. That said, hardiness and hue seem to be linked (at least in my observations), with the lighter shades being somewhat more tender than the good old pink-and-purple sort such as "Army Nurse" (bottom) and "Riccartonii" (top). If left to their own designs, many varieties can attain the size of a small shrub. I keep mine pruned to manageable dimensions. They flower on both new and old wood, so pruning is simply a matter of taking out stems which have become too leggy or woody. Spare your budget! Chuck the annuals and plant some hardy Fuchsias in your garden next year.