Fuchsia x hybrida Shrimp Cocktail

The Fuchsia 'Shrimp Cocktail' is a hardy variety with a unique colour. Its flowers are all different, in shades of pink, with a very unusual marbled corolla. They bloom continuously from June to September-October, appearing almost fluorescent against the dark green foliage. Together, they form a compact and extremely decorative bush. Hardy down to -10°C (14 °F) in the ground, or even more according to some sources, it is a perfect plant to liven up shaded areas of the garden. In a pot, this fuchsia will be just as desirable, but slightly less hardy!

Hybrid fuchsias are numerous, and most of them are derived 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 more or less upright or trailing, belong to the Onagraceae family. They originate from South America, the Caribbean, and Australia.

The Fuchsia 'Shrimp Cocktail' quickly forms a dense bush with upright and branching stems, about 70 cm (27.6 in) tall and wide. In favorable climates, if its branches are not frozen in winter, it can even reach a height of 1.20 m (3 ft 11 in). The stems, initially herbaceous, become woody as the season progresses. They bear abundant foliage, dark green, composed of leaves grouped in 3 or 5, entire, lanceolate, rather narrow and small. These deciduous leaves fall in autumn and reappear in spring. Flowering occurs from June to September-October, sometimes until November if the weather remains mild. The flowers are medium-sized. Each one has a calyx, a kind of long tube extended by 4 long and upturned sepals, surrounding a corolla composed of broad and short petals. The calyx is shrimp pink, while the corolla is pale silver pink to candy pink, more or less marbled with brighter pink tones. Long shrimp pink stamens complete the color harmony.

This Fuchsia 'Shrimp Cocktail' is a perennial shrub that can be grown in the ground in our not too cold regions. Its hardiness ranges from -7°C (19.4 °F) (without protection) to -10/-12°C when the base is sheltered 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. There are now believed to be tens of thousands of hybrids!