Alice Hoffman And The Garden News

Day 354: Of the three new varieties of Hardy Fuchsia I planted this year (Dutch Pearl, Garden News and Alice Hoffman), I was a little worried that Alice had disappeared down the rabbit hole. She was a spindly plant to begin with, and I added insult to injury by planting her a little too deeply. Her delicate foliage (normally much smaller than that of other varieties even under optimum growing conditions) suffered in consequence and her stems never achieved more than 4" in height. But dear Alice may just be a late bloomer. She is starting to put on a few flowers with coppery-pink sepals and white petals. Although Dutch Pearl's flowering period is over, Garden News has produced an abundance of full-sized blooms all summer long and (knock on wood), none of my hardies have been bothered by insect pests (frequently an issue with the annual varieties). I'll be dividing some of the plants next spring. Gotta keep those hummingbirds happy!

Hardy Fuchsia Cultivars

Day 208: Gordon's in Yelm is rather small as garden stores go, but over the years, I have found some real treasures there and at good prices. Most of my hardy fuchsias have come from them, in the one-gallon size. I knew they sometimes had smaller pots, but I never seemed to hit it at the right time. Yesterday, I scored three new cultivars for $3.99 each, all hardy in Zone 7. This brings my collection of hardy fuchsias to eight now, and since they are a major draw for hummingbirds, I wouldn't mind having even more (preferably different, although I may divide some of my larger specimens). My first was Genii, a small-flowered variety with hot pink sepals and a dark purple corolla. I also have Riccartonii (another small-flowered type), Army Nurse and Dollar Princess (both of which have large flowers similar to those on the annuals), and enchanting Erecta which, true to its name, faces upward. Erecta is white with a pale pink corolla. The others are various shades of pink and purple in a variety of combinations of hue, foliage shape and colour, and flower forms (single, double). Although hardy fuchsias can become rather sprangly, they are easy to maintain in a compact shape. New shoots arise from the base each year; old stalks will put out leaves somewhat later, so they can be pruned back or removed entirely.