Hi Helen,
From your description it sounds as if you have it hanging in an ideal spot ie plenty of shade with only a small amount of sun.

If there are no pests on it I would suggest you are overwatering it and/or watering it at the wrong time.

Always water in the mornings when fuchsias are in pots. Don't water again late afternoon evenings, the reason for this is that the stomata (like our pores in the skin), in the leaves close at the beginning of dark hours and then the plant can't get rid of any excess water, then the roots will be standing in wet soggy soil and this will rot them.

With a healthy plant if the leaves begin to droop during late afternoon/early evening just give them a spray preferably with rain water and water the soil again the next morning.

Hope this helps you - Kath :)

Thanks for the help Kath!

I was watering it in the morning - but way too much (soaking it until water flowed through the mat). I thought that because it was in a coco mat hanger that I couldn't overwater- maybe not the most enlightened thought I've ever had! :)

What do I do now to help it recover? Its a very large VERY limp plant right now - though the leaves are still green and the buds are still pink. Should I repot it into drier soil?, cut it back - so the roots don't have so much plant to support?, pray?? It doesn't help that its been cold and damp here in Baltimore so the soil isn't drying out very quickly.
-Helen

I'm relatively new to fuschias, so you may want to take this with a grain of salt...perhaps others can weigh in.

I find that my fuschias require lots of fertilizer. I use Miracle Grow about every two weeks. When my plants have occasionally looked as you describe ("All the leaves and branches are very limp and it is starting to drop blossoms"), liquid fertilizer usually perks them up.

I water about every 4 days.

Hi Helen,
Can you have a look at the main stems where they come out of the soil, are they still healthy looking light brown colour, or are they dark brown/black? The reason I ask this is that you say you've had a lot of cold damp weather plus you've been over watering it, and I'm wondering if it's got or beginning to get botrytis. This is a fungus caused by cold/wetness and leaves will start to fall off of the stems near to the soil. If this is the case, then spray that area with a fungicide. Have a look and let me know - Kath :)

Hi Kath!
I just went out to check, and the stems are nice and light brown. And there are just as many (sickly) leaves at the base of the stem as along it.

The ironic thing is plant looks like it NEEDS water, (i.e., the leaves and buds are limp and shriveled like an unwatered plant left out in the hot sun) even though I had soaked it every day on a shady porch. In fact a neighbor insisted I was not watering it enough!

The day I got the plant I moved it to a larger hanging planter. It was somewhat rootbound and a large mass of healthy looking small white roots were visible on the surface of the root ball. I repotted it yesterday (~3 weeks later). The dirt ball from the original planter no longer had white roots on its surface. I didn't poke around too much 'cause I didn't want to stress it anymore.

At this point the plant is in pretty bad shape. My family is having some laughs at my expense - calling me a "fuchsia killer" and claiming that our porch is haunted. It is sort of stunning how fast the plant went from glorious to "next-to-dead".

While the leaves and buds are SO limp and dead looking, at this point the branches are still live "green wood" (i.e., not brittle). Should I cut the plant back in hopes that with less plant for the (remaining) roots to support it might re-grow. Or just hold tight.

Thanks for your help,
Helen

Hi Kath!
I just went out to check, and the stems are nice and light brown. And there are just as many (sickly) leaves at the base of the stem as along it.

The ironic thing is plant looks like it NEEDS water, (i.e., the leaves and buds are limp and shriveled like an unwatered plant left out in the hot sun) even though I had soaked it every day on a shady porch. In fact a neighbor insisted I was not watering it enough!

The day I got the plant I moved it to a larger hanging planter. It was somewhat rootbound and a large mass of healthy looking small white roots were visible on the surface of the root ball. I repotted it yesterday (~3 weeks later). The dirt ball from the original planter no longer had white roots on its surface. I didn't poke around too much 'cause I didn't want to stress it anymore.

At this point the plant is in pretty bad shape. My family is having some laughs at my expense - calling me a "fuchsia killer" and claiming that our porch is haunted. It is sort of stunning how fast the plant went from glorious to "next-to-dead".

While the leaves and buds are SO limp and dead looking, at this point the branches are still live "green wood" (i.e., not brittle). Should I cut the plant back in hopes that with less plant for the (remaining) roots to support it might re-grow. Or just hold tight.

Thanks for your help,
Helen

Hi again Helen,
Poor you, being teased about it as well, persevere, there's always hope :)
From what you tell us I think you have drowned it, especially as you say you cannot see as many white roots as in the beginning. Too much water rots the roots, then they go brown and black.

The best thng to do is to cut it hard back and start again for any chance of survival. Cut it back to 6 inches and remove any leaves that are left on the remaining stems. Then take it out of the basket, carefully remove at least 2/3rds of the soil, also remove any black roots, so your just left with white roots, there might not be many, but if there's a few it will survive.

Mix into your new soil some perlite or something similar to help 'open-up' the soil and give better drainage. Plant into a pot where the remaining roots just fit into nicely, not a large pot, water and keep just moist and stand in a shady spot until you see new growth appearing, if and when it is growing nicely again then plant back into a hanging basket. Do not feed until it has fully recovered.

Fingers crossed for you, Kath:)

Hi Helen

I am sure Kath is correct in all that she is telling you, just a little bit more to add. If you can take the rootball out of the container you should try to get as much moisture out of this as possible before repotting. One way is to use absorbent kitchen towel as this soaks up a lot of moisture on contact, then just do as Kath recommends and with fingers crossed your plant should survive.

Tight.....

Thanks for the help Kath and Tight,

When I told my son what I was going to do he replied in a mock dramatic voice; "Pass the scapel Joe- its going to be a long night."
(At least someone is getting some amusement out of this.)

Well, the plants out of surgery. It had some white roots remaining (not a heck of a lot though). Hopefully it will make it. If nothing else, now I know what NOT to do with my other fuchsia. I bought them later so had not had as much time to kill them with my kindness!

I can't wait 'til my husband sees the "stick sculpture" we now have on our front porch. More entertainment value for the family!

:)

-Helen

Helen

As confuchsias says;

"One mans sorrow is another mans joy" - and remember we do this for fun anyway.

Good growing......

Tight

Ughhhhhh. Helen I can do relate! I’m going to try this remedy. Can you post some photos if your plant recovered? It will give me hope. I have long LOVED fuschias and to my chagrin given up because I killed EVERY ONE of them!

Note that this post is seventeen years old, Krista.