Fuchsia Bernadette

The Fuchsia Bernadette offers a double flower full of petals, with a two-tone coloration: its calyx is a vibrant cherry red, which infuses its colour into the rich violet-mauve corolla. A few long stamens extend the beauty of this less hardy specimen, to be grown in a pot and brought indoors in autumn. In mild regions, where frost does not exceed - 4°C (39.2 °F), it can be planted in the ground. It forms a small trailing bush, to be grown in partial shade.

Hybrid Fuchsias are countless, and most of them come from Fuchsia magellanica and Fuchsia fulgens, sometimes with the contribution of Fuchsia triphylla, which adds length to the flowers. All these herbaceous to woody plants, more or less hardy and usually upright with a relaxed branching habit, belong to the Onagraceae family. They are native to South America, the Caribbean, and Australia.

The Fuchsia Bernadette quickly forms a dense bush, 1 m (3 ft 4 in) tall. The stems, initially herbaceous, become woody throughout the season. They bear abundant foliage, quite dark green, composed of leaves gathered in 3 or 5, entire, lanceolate, rather narrow. These deciduous leaves fall in autumn and reappear in spring. The flowering period extends from June to September. Its flowers are of medium size. Each one has a calyx, a kind of long tube extended by 4 long and curled sepals, surrounding a double corolla composed of wide and short petals. The calyx is cherry red while the corolla is violet to mauve, veined with cherry red. Long cherry red stamens perfect the harmony of colors.

This Fuchsia Bernadette is a perennial shrub that can be grown in the ground in warmer regions. Its hardiness is low, around -4°C, when care is taken to protect the stump in winter. Fuchsias go well with hydrangeas and the foliage of ferns, rodgersias, orange heucheras, or hostas. In a flower pot, they can be accompanied for example by ivy, lobelias, or begonias.

Discovered in Santo Domingo in the 17th century and acclimatized in Europe, it was named Fuchsia (not Fuschia) in honor of a German botanist named Fuchs. Native to South America, botanical Fuchsias have gradually been multiplied. Today, there are believed to be tens of thousands of hybrids!