Fuchsia plants are beautiful-looking plants that come in bright colors such as orange, white, pink, and purple. They can reward your home with radiance and also make your garden look so attractive.

But first, you’ll need to take proper care of the perennial plants before they bloom. To help you with that, this guide offers you 5 simple steps to take in caring for your Fuchsia plants.

Step One – Nurturing Your Plant

Before you start watering your plant you’ll need to test the soil in order to determine the moisture level. Do this by sticking your finger at least 2.5 cm into the soil to see if it feels dry. If it does, that means your fuchsia plant is due for watering.

If damp, wait for another 12 to 24 hours before doing another check. And if in hot weather, ensure you water the plants daily.

In order to water the plants, you’ll need to pour water into the soil until it drains from the bottom of the pot. That means you keep adding water until you see that water is dribbling from the pot’s bottom. The idea is to make the soil moist throughout.

After the heat must have passed, you can resume watering your plants twice or three times weekly. However, you must keep testing the soil to find out its moisture before you water the plants. This schedule for watering the plants should be maintained during the fall to enable the plants to bloom in spring.

From the periods of early November through Early March, allow for the soil to get relatively dry. You should water it with 8 fluid ounces or 240 ml. This should be done every 3 weeks or once monthly through the period specified.

Though there isn’t a need for too much water, you’ll need to also ensure that the plant doesn’t get too dry as well.

You’re expected to fertilize the plants at least once weekly throughout the spring and summer months. A fertilizer with an NPK of 20-20-20 or 16-16-16 (having equal nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) would be suitable. Measure the fertilizer input by the size of your pots, which is fertilized in a 30 cm pot with 7 drops of liquid fertilizer.

Step Two – Picking the Right Spot

The best spot to use for planting fuchsia is one that directly gets the morning sunlight and the afternoon shade. You can have it placed behind a window facing the south or west. The hot afternoon sunlight is very harsh for your fuchsia plant though it can handle direct lighting.

Another thing you have to consider when selecting a spot for your plant is the exposure to wind. Heavy winds should be prevented from having direct contact with your plants because the plants are delicate. If the winds are too strong, they can dry up your plant faster than you think.

Your fuchsia plants do very well when exposed to moderate temperatures. An indoor temperature of 15 to 24 degrees centigrade would be ideal for the fuchsia plants.

If you’re placing the plants outside, take note of the weather forecast for the day before designating a spot for it. Also, Fuchsia plants are okay with overnight temperatures that range 10 to 15 degrees centigrade.

If left outside throughout the night, get your plants indoors before the first frost of the fall. This should mean that your plants are kept inside the house starting September or October.

Step Three – Pruning

You should have your plants pruned during the early spring just before the growth period. You’ll have to hold on until the last frost has passed so you can clearly see the new shoots forming off the plant. Indoor plants can be pruned until they are 4 inches above the soil, using garden shears. The cutting should be at a 45-degree angle in order to prevent diseases while allowing the plants to absorb moisture.

Also, while cutting you’ll have to cut above the second or third node that has 2 leaves. This will allow your fuchsia plants to grow longer and healthier.

Any drooping blooms or pods should be plucked off from the base of the bloom. You can use your fingers to pinch the stems and gently break off the bloom and the pod.

For outdoor plants, you’ll need to trim them back as much as half in the late autumn. This will ensure that they are kept ready for the dominant phase.

Step Four – Protecting Your Fuchsia Plants

You can protect your Fuchsia plants from whiteflies using tacky traps hung above your plants. This measure has to be taken especially for outdoor plants since they are more susceptible to whiteflies.

Also, have the underside of the leaves washed once or twice weekly to kill any aphids lurking around. If you discover that the leaves of your plants are curling or turning yellow, give them a good wash with a hose. For indoor plants, you can use the nozzle of your kitchen sink for washing.

To dispel thrips and mealybugs, you should spray the leaves with insecticidal soap from the bottle. Neem oil is also effective or you could make your own insecticidal soap.

If you discover Fuchsia rust, you can cut the leaves all the way to the wood. And if fuzzy, gray spores are discovered, you should repot the affected plant with fresh soil.

Step Five – Potting Your Plant

It is important that you make use of well-drained soil for your fuchsia plants. And to make sure of that, use peat, vermiculite, or perlite-based soil for potting your plants. Avoid using garden soil for potting your plants as they do not drain quickly.

If using a 30 cm pot for your plants, fill with soil until it is three-quarters full as the pot is adequate to hold 6 small plants comfortably.

You’ll have to place the 6 small fuchsia plants on the top of the soil. You can also repot an existing plant or propagate cuttings. Scoop some soil into the pot and then water the pot very well until the water runs out of the bottom.

Conclusion

Fuchsia plants are adorable when they bloom but you have to take good care of them when they are much younger.

This post offers you 5 simple steps to take in caring for your Fuchsia plants.

Hope you enjoy reading this article and if you have a question about or something that you want to share, please leave your comment below and I’ll be happy to write back to you.