IS IT TIME TO
RECONSIDER
FUCHSIAS IN YOUR
YARD?
By Don Helsel
It used to be that when you drove down our local streets you saw Fuchsias frequently combined into a yards landscaping. Here in Crescent City you still see a few plants here and there but in other areas they are nearly nonexistent. Probably the Fuchsia mite is mostly to blame for this loss in popularity. No gardener or homeowner likes to see those nasty curled and deformed flowers and stems caused by this pest. Many people have solved the problem by digging up and disposing of their Fuchsia plants. Of course this is no news to those of us in the hobby as we have seen it time and time again with our newer members and even some old timers.
Well maybe there is an answer to the problem that may well encourage us to reconsider removing fuchsias from our landscaping and maybe even add more.
I am speaking of “Bayer Advanced All in One Rose and Flower Care”. This is a relatively new product that has only (to my knowledge) been on the market for 2-3 years. It is a liquid, systemic product that 20 American Fuchsia Society Bulletin January – March 2008 the makers bill as “3 Systemic Products in 1”. They call it a fertilizer, insect control and disease control with protection for up to 6 weeks. The product is applied at the rate of 2 oz (4 TBSP) per 2 gallons of water which treats 12 square feet. It should be applied directly to the ground, under the plant. If it gets on the leaves it seems to cause spotting or leaf burn.
This product is not to be used on potted or container plants per the label warning. I would guess that is because the product washes out of the planting mix fairly quickly. I personally have used it on both container and ground planted plants while at the same time stopping all spraying. I found that the container plants had very short lived protection and started showing signs of fuchsia mite in as little as 3 weeks after application. Plants in the ground on the other hand seemed to thrive with vigorous growth and good bloom while showing no sign of mite. This is my second year of using the product and I am more and more impressed with how nice my fuchsias, planted in the yard, appear.
In my view it appears upright fuchsias are not as popular as hanging container plants. Well with the apparent effectiveness of this product, it would appear we should be giving those upright varieties of fuchsias a second look. When you look at nursery lists there seem to be hundreds of uprights to choose from, most well suited for the yard.
While the fuchsia mite is not specifically listed on the label as a targeted pest, the product still seems to be effective. Specifically targeted are most sucking and chewing insects including the White Fly, a regular summer pest. Targeted diseases include mildew and rust amongst other diseases.
At a time when our fuchsia hobby is struggling, maybe with this product there is still a ray of hope for the future of our fuchsias.