Best time for pruning fuchia

Press, 16 July 1982, Page 7

Best time for pruning fuchia

In a recent resume of tasks for July it was suggested that fuchsias could be pruned now. A letter has been received from D.M. (Southbridge) in which he comments: “July is one of the worst months for pruning fuchsias. If pruned now you are inviting stem rot and die back to develop, and this die back, encouraged by the cold, wet frosty weather, will affect the entire plant, and is the chief cause of fuchsia losses. If there is a spell of mild weather it will induce the fuchsia into growth, with disastrous results with the next frost. The unpruned stems help to keep the forst from the base shoots from where

your new growth is going to come.” Thank you for your comments and advice. While I would fully agree that the recommendation to prune fuchsias in July may be a bit premature in many places, and that new growth could well get frosted, losses have not been my experience. It is very difficult to provide information which will suit all localities as so much depends on prevailing cifcumstances. It was once said that roses shouldn't be pruned before August in Canterbury, yet this year they were pruned by the beginning of June by some very prominent growers.