Fuchsias (which can sometimes be misspelled as “fuschias”) are a group of over 100 species of flowering trees and shrubs that are native to Central and South America, Tahiti, and New Zealand. Today there are an estimated 3000-5000 varieties and cultivars!
Fuchsia plants are classified as either hardy or tender, with tender types requiring overwintering indoors, and hardy types behaving as perennials in mild climates. Tender types are generally suited to USDA zones 10-11, and more often than not hardy types suit zones 7-10.
Rising to fame in the Victorian Era, these shrubs with their ornate, pendulum blooms are sometimes referred to as Lady’s Ear Drops due to their resembling dangling earrings. Fuchsias come in a range of colors and color combinations, which means they are suited to many garden styles, ranging from cottage-style to Japanese-inspired.
Fuchsia flowers are extremely versatile and are great for hanging baskets and container planting, and can be trained as hedges or topiary standards. These magnificent plants are firm garden favorites, and looking at their range of flower colors and forms, it is easy to understand why!
Unique Fuchsia Varieties To Add To Your Garden
Here are some common fuschia plant varieties including hybrid fuchsia flowers.
#1 Toothed Fuchsia (F. denticulata)
This tender Fuchsia variety is native to Peru and Bolivia and has delightful flowers. Blooms have a long, narrow shape with short petals and sepals. The elongated and almost square tubes are raspberry-pink, and transition nicely into the light green sepals. Petals are coral, with flushed white bases, whereas stamens are a stark white. This plant is well suited to city and courtyard gardens but needs to be overwintered in a frost-free greenhouse or garden shed.
#2 Lady Bacon (F. magellanica)
Lady Bacon is a hardy Fuchsia that can reach 4 feet tall. It is an upright shrub, sought after for its numerous, beautiful flowers which bloom from early summer until frost. Single flowers are small and elegant. They have reddish-pink long tubes, narrow pale pink sepals, rich purple petals, and red-pink stamens. This rare tri-color effect makes this plant stunning when planted in small groups along cottage or coastal-style garden borders. It is native to Chile and Argentina and is attractive to hummingbirds and bees.
#3 F. magellanica var. gracilis
This Fuchsia variety is a hardy type that reaches heights of 3 feet, this medium-sized shrub is noted for its numerous small and delicate flowers. Blooms are slender, with scarlet-pink tubes, sepals and stamens, and rich purple petals. A lovely candidate for borders and beds of cottage-style gardens, this plant will attract pollinators.
#4 Variegated Magellan Fuchsia (F. magellanica var. gracilis ‘Variegata‘)
Just shy of 24 inches, the Variegated Magellan Fuchsia is the perfect choice for both pollinator and courtyard gardens. Leaves are small, ovate, and green with cream edges. This hardy type has narrow, slender flowers that have scarlet-pink sepals and tubes, deep purple, single form petals, and scarlet-pink stamens.
#5 Maiden’s Blush Fuchsia (F. magellanica var. molinae)
Also known as F. magellanica “Alba”, this variety was introduced in 1929 and is a hardy Fuchsia (zones 6-10). Growing up to 5 feet tall, this upright shrub produces pretty, dainty flowers. Blooms are small and slender, with cream tubes, white sepals, and pale, lilac-pink petals. Their stamens are long and white. Grow them in mixed borders of coastal and cottage-style gardens.
#6 Billy Green (F. triphylla)
Billy Green grows as tall as 24 inches. This is a heat-tolerant variety that can withstand full sun. It is a Triphylla Fuchsia, meaning flowers have a long, narrow shape, due to their elongated tubes, and it bears leaves in sets of three rather than two. Long tubes and short sepals are coral-pink, with small, short dark coral-pink petals and pale pink stamens. Their vivid color and unique shape lend them to tropical gardens.
#7 Annabel (Hybrid)
Annabel is a type of Fuchsia flower that grows up to 24 inches tall. It is hardy to zones 8-11, so in mild climates can be left in the ground over winter. This Fuchsia tree can be trained as a topiary standard and is well-suited to cottage-style gardens. Blooms are medium to large and have double white petals veined with pale pink. Sepals are white and fade to pale pink at the tips, stamens are bright pink.
#8 Army Nurse (Hybrid)
This beautiful Fuchsia variety would look great in borders or beds of informal and cottage-style gardens. Reaching a mature height of 20 inches, this is a medium-sized, upright shrub that is hardy in zones 8-11. Flowers have curled pink-red sepals, and double purple-blue petals flushed pink at the base. Stamens are pink. Mulching over winter is recommended to provide extra protection from the cold.
#9 Ballet Girl (Hybrid)
Ballet Girl is a tender Fuchsia shrub that grows as tall as 18 inches and is a good candidate to become a topiary standard due to its upright nature. It is extremely attractive to pollinators and has medium to large double form flowers. The pink-red sepals curve upwards and petals are white with pink veining at the base. Stamens are deep pink-red.
#10 Ben Jammin’ (Hybrid)
This tender Fuchsia variety can reach 24 inches tall and has beautiful medium-sized single flowers. Attractive to hummingbirds and bees, flowers have white or pale pink tubes which fade to pale, purple-pink curved sepals. Petals and stamens are a rich purple. Flowers contrast nicely with the dark green foliage making this an eye-catching variety to grow in patio gardens.
#11 Checkerboard (Hybrid)
Checkerboard is a prolific bloomer. It is an upright, medium-sized plant that can grow as large as 36 inches and is suited to be trained as a topiary standard. Flowers are elongated, with long raspberry pink tubes, and curved white sepals. Single petals are deep red-pink, contrasting nicely with the white stamens.
#12 Claudia (Hybrid)
Winter hardy for zones 9-10, Claudia is a half-hardy Fuchsia with delicate pink blooms. Growing up to 24 inches tall, its branching nature and trailing stems make it the perfect variety for hanging baskets and window boxes. Large flowers have blush pink sepals, frilly, pale pink petals, and blush pink stamens. Plant it in a sheltered location.
#13 Dancing Flame (Hybrid)
Dancing Flame is a half-hardy Fuchsia variety, whose semi-trailing nature lends it to hanging basket and container planting. Flowers reach 2 inches across and have pale orange tubes which fade to light orange sepals. Double petals are dark orange-red with pale orange stamens. This Fuchsia bush may be left outside in areas that experience mild winters, otherwise, overwinter it in a greenhouse.
#14 Delta’s Sara (Hybrid)
Delta’s Sara is a truly magnificent Fuchsia shrub and makes a great specimen piece in cottage-style or patio gardens. Growing as tall as 36 inches, this variety looks great in borders or as a topiary standard. Blooms have narrow, white sepals which curve upwards and double blue-violet petals. The stamens have white filaments and bright pink anthers. This is a half-hardy type that requires heavy mulching over winter.
#15 Genii (Hybrid)
Award winner Genii is a hardy Fuchsia bush with attractive green-yellow foliage and red-pink stems. It reaches heights of 36 inches and has small, delicate, single flowers. Blooms have slender, curved, red-pink sepals, rich purple-red petals, and red-pink stamens. This is a great choice as a container plant in small patio gardens.
#16 Hawaiian Sunset (Hybrid)
Hawaiian Sunset is a highly sought-after Fuchsia variety that forms upright, bushy shrubs with numerous blooms. Growing as large as 24 inches, this plant is attractive to hummingbirds and bees, and has beautiful double flowers. Tubes have pale pink stripes which fade to pale pink sepals, and dark red-purple stamens and frilly petals. Hardy to zones 9-10, this plant lends itself to cottage-style borders and container planting.
#17 Hawkshead (Hybrid)
Hawkshead is a hardy type and is an upright and bushy Fuchsia shrub. Masses of lovely flowers dangle gracefully from arching stems, making this a lovely container specimen for patio or cottage-style gardens. Growing as large as 4 feet tall, blooms have pure white tubes and green-tipped sepals, with petals that are white with just a hint of violet pink. Stamens have white filaments and delicately pink anthers. In frost-free climates, this is an evergreen plant that makes lovely informal hedges.
#18 Hermiena (Hybrid)
This Fuchsia flower has striking blooms which would look at home planted in beds and borders of cottage-style gardens. Its trailing habit also makes it suitable for hanging baskets and window box planting. Flowers are just shy of 2 inches across and have nicely contrasting petals and sepals. Sepals are narrow and white, with soft pink flushed tips, whereas petals are a rich, velvety reddish-purple. Stamens are bright pink. These Fuchsias are half-hardy, so should only be grown outdoors year-round in places that experience mild winters.
#19 Lady Boothby (Hybrid)
Introduced in 1939, Lady Boothby was bred from a Brazilian Fuchsia flower, and named in honor of the founder of the British Fuchsia Society. A climbing species, it can spread to reach heights of just under 10 feet so is perfect for trellises and fences. It is a hardy species and can be left outdoors over winter. Flowers are small and have a single form, with crimson sepals and dark purple petals.
#20 Rose Fantasia (Hybrid)
This lovely and rather unusual tender Fuchsia flower has upward-facing blooms. A prolific bloomer growing as tall as 24 inches, this is a great addition to summer bedding schemes in traditional or cottage-style gardens. It also makes a worthy container plant and can be trained as the most delightful topiary standard! Flowers are medium-sized and have coral-pink sepals with blush pink petals which are flushed darker at the base. Rose Fantasia will attract pollinators such as bees and hummingbirds into the garden.
#21 Swingtime (Hybrid)
The Swingtime is an extremely popular trailing Fuchsia variety often used for hanging baskets. This lovely shrub can also be trained as a weeping standard, which would look magnificent in a cottage-style or informal garden! Double flowers are large with ruffled white petals adorned with dark pink veins, short scarlet-pink sepals, and pink stamens.
#22 Traudchen Bonstedt (Hybrid)
Traudchen Bonstedt is a Triphylla Fuchsia type whose flowers hang in terminal clusters from long, upright stems. Blooms have bright pink elongated tubes, downward-facing salmon pink sepals, and pale orange petals. Foliage is dark green and contrasts nicely with the vivid flowers. Its bright color scheme lends this Fuchsia shrub to tropical-style gardens, but note that it is extremely tender and will need to be overwintered indoors in warm temperatures.
*References
Reference list:
The Royal Horticultural Society, Fuchsia ‘Annabel’ (d)
https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/91659/Fuchsia-Annabel-(d)/Details
The Royal Horticultural Society, Fuchsia ‘Billy Green’ (T)
https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/78581/Fuchsia-Billy-Green-(T)/Details
The Royal Horticultural Society, Fuchsia ‘Claudia’ (d)
https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/150705/Fuchsia-Claudia-(d)/Details
Kathy Wolfe. (2014). Hardy Fuchsias
https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/2073/2014/03/HardyFuchias.pdf
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