Another MG victim :))

[TKR99]

Once again, I've let another plant fall victim to the wonder that is Miracle Gro.  As I mentioned in my Rhodo Q elsewhere on the Forum, I'd been given a bag of this earlier in the season & as it ended up being the only compost I had at a critical point where I'd a lot of plants needing potted up I just used it for pretty much all of them.   But while some have behaved sensibly, others like my poor Rhodo & this fuschia have had a bit too much excitement methinks with inevitable results.

Don't get me wrong - in many ways I'm hugely happy this fuschia has grown SO well, but it's done so to the point where now, instead of settling down to prepare for the winter ahead, it's putting out a huge number of flower buds.

SO I'm really just looking to see whether it's ok to let it go ahead and flower so late now in the season, or whether I'd be better to chop off all the top growth & flower buds & force it to settle down a bit to ease the burden on it for the colder weather we're already getting a good taste of?  Also, as I've lost quite a few of these each year to frost, what's the best way to prepare it - I don't have any sheltered place other than the yard to put it in, so wondering could I just bubble wrap the container or is that futile?

Thanks guys.
Romayne

http://www.kitsandcards.co.uk/images/stories/Fuschia2012.JPG

[JohnB]

You've certainly got an interesting dilemna on your hands. It looks like a hardy fuschia to me, but I'm no expert. If you have the space, I'd suggest you dig a hole in the garden somewhere and drop the whole thing into the ground - matching soil levels - maybe put a bit of gravel or some small stones under the pot to help it drain. Then as soon as the frost takes the top cover it with a good layer of leaves or mulch - then in spring, it should start growing from the base again.

Otherwise, let it go dormant by witholding watering, and place it in the most sheltered spot you have -- an unheated garage would work...

[Palustris]

All our hardy Fuchsias are still going strong and flowering. They are all out in the garden rather than in pots though. We will do nothing to them and let the winter take its toll. In Spring any dead material is removed and they shoot from the base. In a mild winter (yes, we have had them) the top growth remains green all year. After all in Cornwall and Ireland, the hardy Fuchsia is used as a hedge plant.
Let it keep on growing and flowering. As John says, stand it in a sheltered place, so the roots do not get frozen though.

[roiphil]

I would tend to agree with the above just keep it well sheltered, here in ireland we have fuchsias in hedgerows the hedgecutter man comes round once a year cuts the sides and thats it, even when we got down to -10 if not colder a couple of years back they still grew the following year, so keep the pot well shelterd aswell
phil