Cut back a hardy fuchsia to move it?

Hi,

I have a lot of hardy fuchsias in my garden (been here a year now) and I need to move one probably tomorrow or this weekend for a wood store.

It is big and still in flower, should I cut it back to the base before transplanting it or move ‘as is’ please?

Many thanks

 

Personally I would....but wait to see what others say first as I would hate to give you the wrong advice.
We cut all ours back really hard every late Autumn/ early Winter so can't see any real issues with you doing the same to your one before moving it.

I know the experts say to not cut them back hard because they could be put at risk of infection and rot but we have always done so for the last 41 yrs without and such issues.

 

Thank you @Upsydaisy

I've never had them before, so this is all new to me and there are about six dotted around the garden that have gone bonkers, so might need to do something with some of them as well at some point.

 

Note I have edited my post above.
We have a fair few too and my hubs cuts them back to ground level....no faffing about with him...it's the chop or not!!!

They grow back perfectly well each year.
Just wait and see what the others say before you get chopping.....I could just about cope will killing one of ours off and wouldn't if I caused the sad demise of someone else's.

 

Sorry about my spelling....I'm having real issues with predicted text this morning, not sure why.

 

No worries @Upsydaisy I haven't found my glasses yet, so being extra careful what I type as it could be anything

 

I would say it depends on the variety and whether you live in a mild or colder area. Fuchsias have different degrees of hardiness.
I never cut mine back until the spring, incase they get killed if we have a colder than usual spell. But if you're going to move one I would cut it back quite a lot to prevent water loss through the leaves when it hasn't got enough roots to take up more ... and they're going to die back soon anyway.

One good point to remember when planting a hardy Fuchsia is to bury them deeper in the ground than if you were planting something else. The theory is that the base of the stems would be protected under the ground from the worst weather, and if the top was badly damaged in a very cold spell, it would be able to regrow in the spring.
An alternative would be to give them a good mulch.

 

We would suggest you cut them back to about 6" to 9" of the base, then lift them with as much soil as you can get. That gives them chance to sprout from the stems or the base.
The hardy ones seem to be very tough and movable, do you know their names ?

 

Thank you @Michael Hewett that is really useful information. I am going to have to move it and I have chosen a sunny spot, which is also a bit sheltered like where it is now, for it to go, so will take your advice on cutting it back, how to plant it and give it a good mulch as well.

 

It will be fine in a sheltered spot. I have left so called 'tender' ones out all winter long a few times (forgot to take them in !) but luckilly they were in the shelter of other shrubs and survived. One even survived being under a cover of snow for a few days - you see it depends on the hardiness of the particular variety, and the situation they're growing in.

Don't bury the crown too deep, just under the surface is enough.

 

Thank you @ricky101 that is really useful

I have only been here a year and don't know the names of the plants unfortunately. I wouldn't chose hardy fuchsias, but I bought the house for the garden, the 91 year old Lady had lived here for 35 years clearly loved it, so I will honour her planting and only remove them as they naturally end their lives, which looking at the size of most of them at the moment, will be long after I'm gone

The first two images are the fuchsia I need to move, then third one, is a massive one, but has different coloured leaves, so assuming it is a different cultivar? I need to give that a good trim, as I can barely get past it now

 

Thanks @Michael Hewett might move the final location a bit, so it is sheltered on a couple of sides it will make it.

 

The first one looks like Mrs Popple - very hardy.
The golden leaf one is probably Geanii - also very hardy.

Both can grow tall and wide and will probably need trimming during the growing season. I have a Mrs Popple at the moment which is almost as tall as me and totally blocking a path and I can't get past !

 

Oh, thank you @Michael Hewett that is wonderful and good to know I can give the others a bit of trim during the year, I certainly don't want the Geanii to get any bigger!!

 

They do look quite old plants and the older they get they seem to develop deeper tap roots rather than a lot of higher up fibrous roots, so when you dig them up they don't always successfully move and regrow so well, though hopefully yours will.

However, if you like them and want to be sure some survive, take some healthy looking tips off the ends of some stems, about 75-100mm long and root them in water in the house.