How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Fuchsias

Fuchsias are abundant in summer. You’ll see them cascading over hanging baskets, filling raised beds, and decorating front porches. These shade lovers excel in home gardens, and some overwinter in mild regions! Learn how to plant, grow, and care for fuchsias alongside fuchsia lover Jerad Bryant.

Fuchsias fill the air with their purple, pink, red, white, and multi-color blooms! They’re exceptional. Some consider fuchsias old-fashioned, but I disagree. They’re essential in shady shrub gardens.

Some fuchsias are hardy perennials, while most of the garden hybrids are frost-tender perennials. They thrive outdoors in spring, summer, and fall. Frost-tender perennials die at the first frost, while the hardy fuchsias enter dormancy for the winter.

Whether you’re filling hanging baskets or adding color to your borders, fuchsia plants are the right pick. Give them good soil, regular moisture, and plenty of shade—they’ll reward you with dozens of pink-purple blooms!
What Are Fuchsias?
Fuchsias are high-performing tender shrubs with ample leaves, blooms, and stems. Although they require more nutrients and moisture than most garden plants, their unique-shaped flowers are worth the extra care!

Native Area
Fuchsia species originate from New Zealand, South and Central America, and Mexico. They tend to be understory plants that thrive beneath taller trees and shrubs. The shade the canopy provides is perfect for them, as they prefer partially shady or dappled shade conditions.

Most hardy fuchsias are varieties of the species Fuchsia magellanica, while the tender hybrids at nurseries and garden centers involve complex crosses of many different species. Their characteristics vary depending on their parentage.

Characteristics
Fuchsias tend to have arching stems, ovate leaves, and folded flowers. The flowers have a collar-like structure that folds around the inner floral parts. They sort of look like spinning tops! Some varieties have giant folds, while others have tight ones.

Fuchsias grow differently depending on their type. Some are upright, others are arching, and a few grow along the soil like a ground cover. Which is best for your garden depends on the setup. Plant upright and arching types in the ground, and place drooping and prostrate ones in containers so they spill over the edges.

Depending on the species, these shrubs are frost-tender or frost-hardy. Choose tender types for containers and hardy ones for in the ground. Frost-tender varieties overwinter in hardiness zones 10 through 12, and hardy types overwinter in zones 5 through 10.

Planting
You must find hybrid fuchsias at stores and garden centers, as they don’t sprout true to seed. Seedlings grow differently from their parents, with new leaf shapes, bloom colors, and petal formations. Try growing fuchsias from seeds if you’d like to experiment with them, or find your favorite cultivar at the store or online.
How to Grow
Fuchsias grow well so long as some simple care requirements are met. Give your plants what they need to thrive, and you’ll have gorgeous, free-blooming fuchsias to enjoy all summer long.
Maintenance
Upright fuchsia varieties may require staking, as their tall stems can flop or droop when they grow heavy and tall. Deadhead spent blooms to encourage more flowers, and cut off any dead or diseased leaves to prevent pathogens from spreading.

If you’d like to overwinter your fuchsia and keep it growing until next spring, you’ll have to bring it indoors in cold climates before the first frost. Frosty weather kills hybrid cultivars. Spray off the plants to rid them of pests and dust, then transition them to a cool, bright location indoors. A window with bright, indirect light is ideal.

During the winter, potted specimens require little water and no fertilizer. Keep them on the dry side, and water them right before the leaves start to droop.

Propagation
Propagate fuchsias by taking stem cuttings or by saving their seeds. Cuttings are a reliable way of replicating your favorite varieties, while seeds offer a chance to discover new hybrids. Seed germination is a bit difficult; if none sprout, try taking cuttings instead.