Fuscia

When is ok to hack back a fuscia tree as it now is, back down to being a bush?

It's lovely to look at but it's beginning (well ok it's more than begun) to take over the path so it needs a bit of a haircut. I've resorted to not cutting it whilst the bees and wasps are paying attention to it as I've no desire to be stung for annoying them!

When we have daylight again I'll take a photo of the monster!

Thanks for any advice, it's certainly most welcome.

 

Hey, there, it's me again.

I'd say cut it baxk after flowering and you can be quite vicious. Fuchsias are hardier than most people think.

I'm in a different situation now but trying to remember what I did when I lived in Bucks is not much different than here, just timing.

I'm sure someone will come along tomorrow and tell you what you should do in your region.

 

Hi Debbie
At my old house we had a pretty big hardy fuscia which seemed to love getting too big for it's boots! :D

Sometimes I just cut it back after it flowered and give it a good mulching for over wintering....othertimes I would wait until spring and cut back to the shape and size I desired always taking into account where it was shooting 'new growth'.... both ways worked well for me!
Helen.xxx.

 

Thanks, I had pretty much decided to wait for the flowers to go before I hacked it back, purely for self preservation reasons though as I've never seen so many bees/wasps in one place before!

Here's a picture of the monster, please excuse the water board making a mess of the pathway

 

Hi Willo, I have a variegated fuschia which grows through an azalea. I cut the fuschia down to almost the ground every spring so that by the time the azalea has finished growing the fuschia is beginning to sprout sgain, I wouldn't be able to see the azalea flowers if I didn't prune it back so hard!It still makes a good bush each year.

 

Hi Willo, I would give it a trim once it`s stopped flowering and then cut it quite hard back in early spring. David.

 

Sounds to me like this fuschia is reasonably me proof so I'll just wait for it to finish flowring

Good to know it will grow back nicely though, even with a severe haircut!

Thanks for all of your advice

 

Far from me to be different but I have found if you cut them back into really hard wood in spring they bleed badly, and for a long time.
This may or may not have any real effect on an old established plant but it cant do it any good.
I have resorted to cutting back my tree fuschia in mid summer, and although it dont sound right, it bleeds a lot less then.
With your flowering plant Willo I would suggest about now or in the next couple of months, at least before Christmas.

 

Gulp... they bleed :confused: badly :confused: :eek:

The flowers on it are dwindling and with the winds getting up I'll guess that within the next couple of weeks it will be flowerless so will be given a good haircut then. I had thought that I'd not seen any bees around for a while but whilst in a garden centre today I saw one that had chains round it's neck like BA Baraccas so I'll be patient as the bees do seem to like it a lot.

 

Willo, I cut mine back at the beginning of March before the sap rises and I haven't noticed it bleed, this variegated form does take a while to spring into life, I've often thought that it has died before it proves me wrong. Perhaps different types act in different ways. I have about 6 dotted about the garden and they are all treated the same way, I haven't lost one yet.

 

I`ve never had a problem with Fuchsias bleeding after pruning early spring either. David.

 

I have. :D :D :D

 

I agree with daitheplant, cut it back in Spring and give it a feed then.