Fuchsias
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The fuchsias ( Fuchsia ) are a species-rich genus in the evening primrose family (Onagraceae).
This genus currently includes 107 species and around 12,000 varieties , most of which come from the mountain forests of Central and South America . A few species are found in Tahiti and New Zealand .
Fuchsias have been known in Europe since the early 18th century. In the 19th century they became a sought-after ornamental plant and are still often cultivated in Central Europe as container plants , balcony plants or garden shrubs. In climatically more favored regions, they are a widespread ornamental plant.
They are named after the German physician and botanist Leonhart Fuchs , who lived in the 16th century.
Appearance
Habit of the plant
Fuchsia species are woody plants: Half bushes , shrubs and trees . Different types of fuchsia differ greatly in their appearance. The genus includes low-growing species such as Fuchsia procumbens , which only grows a few centimeters high and is occasionally cultivated in rock gardens in Central Europe , as well as Fuchsia excorticata , which grows into a tree and reaches a height of almost ten meters.
The majority of the species, however, are shrubs that are branched differently depending on the species. A few species also grow climbing up other larger plants. The Fuchsia tunariensis even grows as an epiphyte on tree branches or on rocks (lithophyte). It is characterized by bulbous roots. The leaves are mostly elliptical, long-stalked and have a slightly to moderately serrated leaf margin.
The blossoms
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The four-fold flowers of the fuchsias are at the end of 2 to 8 centimeters long flower stalks. The color of the flower stem depends on the species and can be red or green. The underlying ovary , which sits at the end of the stem, can also be colored red or green. It consists of twelve chambers that contain the ovules.
The so-called tube, which is often not exactly called the calyx tube, connects to the ovary. However, it is the tubular, elongated flower axis, which is often colored like a petal and is also called hypanthium. This tube is particularly long in Fuchsia boliviana and Fuchsia fulgens . In other fuchsia species, it is short and thick. The usually four sepals then attach to the calyx tube . They are usually bent back a little. Petals form the corolla, botanically also called corolla. Simple flowers have four, half-double flowers five to seven and double flowers more than seven petals. Sepals and petals are colored differently in many types and varieties of fuchsia. The color spectrum ranges from purple to red and pink to white. Flowers that have red sepals can have white or blue petals. There are also species in which the sepals and petals are identically colored.
The stylus is usually sufficient to project far from the corolla. It is surrounded by eight stamens , which are usually much shorter than the style, but still protrude from the crown.
Origin and Distribution
In tribal history, the original fuchsia species probably come from the Peruvian Andes . From there, they spread north over the Central American land bridge as far as Mexico and south to Tierra del Fuego (Tierra del Fuego) from.
Fuchsias have a very large distribution area today. In America, it extends from northern Mexico to Guatemala , Honduras , El Salvador , Costa Rica , Panama , Colombia , Venezuela , Ecuador , Brazil , Bolivia , Peru , Chile and Argentina down to Tierra del Fuego. Natural occurrences of fuchsias are also found in New Zealand (4 species) and on Tahiti (1 species). Fuchsia fossil pollen found in New Zealand is estimated to be 30 million years old. These particularly widely migrated species are usually placed in the Skinnera section and have particularly characteristic features.
About 100 species are known today.
As garden refugees , fuchsias have settled in climatically favored regions of Europe. Forms of Fuchsia magellanica can be found today along the west coast of the British Isles from Cornwall to Scotland and Ireland .
Location requirements
Fuchsias are not tropical plants in the strict sense, although they are native to tropical latitudes. Of course, they mainly occur in higher mountain regions in or on the edge of the tropical rainforest . Only in their southernmost distribution areas do they also grow on slopes and in valleys.
Multiplication
Fuchsias reproduce in the wild via seeds. The berries are usually produced in large numbers. Depending on the species, they are green, reddish or almost black when ripe. They can grow to the size of a plum . Ripe berries are juicy, soft, and puffy. They are edible. The seeds contained are very small and lose their ability to germinate very quickly.
In horticulture , vegetative propagation using cuttings is usually preferred. Fuchsia cuttings take root quickly when the soil heat is 18 to 20 degrees Celsius. In commercial nurseries, the propagation beds are therefore occasionally on heated plant tables. The cuttings must be protected from drafts, blazing sun and evaporation. Their rooting speed increases when the humidity is high. A low -nutrient peat - sand mixture (usually in a 2: 1 ratio) is used as a propagation substrate. Successful root formation is reflected in the resumption of shoot tip growth, i.e. the formation of new leaves and the elongation of the shoot. Cuttings rooted in high humidity and room temperature must then be used to ("hardened") lower temperatures. Soft parts of plants, i.e. parts of plants formed when exposed to heat, root faster than parts that are already woody; basically you can make head and part cuttings.
Hobby gardeners occasionally root cuttings in water glasses. The plants are then potted when the roots are two to three inches long. In general, the propagation of fuchsias via cuttings is considered simple and easy to practice even by private gardeners.
Hardy fuchsias and more robust fuchsia hybrids also form "root runners"; they are subterranean parts of the stem axis and not parts of the root. These can be separated with the attached root and also immediately cultivated in pots.
A cultivation and propagation of fuchsias via an in vitro culture is also possible, but economically and quantitatively not important. Their use is this technique only in the establishment of new types of production of elite plants or pathogen - elimination . Therefore this method of propagation is crucial for the economic success of a young plant production company and for healthy plants in those nurseries that buy the young plants.
Diseases and pests
Fungal diseases
Fuchsias, which have optimal cultivation conditions, are rarely attacked by diseases and pests. However, gray mold rot ( Botrytis cinera ) occurs when the humidity is too high. Then brown-black and putrid spots form on the stems near the bottom, which can lead to entire sections of the twigs to die off. Fuchsias are also attacked by so-called fuchsia rust, a plant disease caused by the rust fungus Pucciniastrum epilobii f. sp. palustris is triggered. He uses fireweed as an intermediate host . Therefore, this plant genus should not be cultivated near fuchsias. The infestation can be determined by the appearance of yellow-brown to rust-red spores on the underside of the leaf. Fuchsias are particularly sensitive to this fungus when the humidity is too high at low room temperatures.
Root rot is caused by various soil fungi. They mainly occur when the fuchsia pot dries out completely and the fine fiber roots of the fuchsia die off as a result. If water is then poured, these dead roots rot and provide ideal growth conditions for mushrooms such as Phytophthora , Thieloaviopsis basicola and Fusarium . They can lead to a complete death of the root system so that the plant is unable to absorb the moisture despite sufficient soil moisture.
Animal pests
Of the various aphid species, the green peach aphid ( Myzus persicae ) in particular attacks fuchsias. Since the lice withdraw cell sap from the plants, leaf cripples or curls occur and the leaves turn yellow. Tetranychus urticae of the spider mites attacks fuchsias. They also prick the leaf tissue and suck out the cell sap. An infestation of white-yellowish leaf spots is recognizable. Among the bed bugs , it is mainly the cloudy field bug and the green food bug that cause severe damage to the fuchsia plants. Here, too, the removal of cell sap by the sucking activity of the bedbugs leads to leaf stalks. However, it mainly affects the buds that these bugs like to pierce. Foam leaf hoppers , on the other hand, do little damage to the plants, but other leaf hoppers occasionally cause damage to the plants. On the other hand, the caterpillars of the middle wine owl can cause major damage . The up to eight centimeters long caterpillars are very voracious. The preferred forage plants are not so much fuchsias, but the fireweed and evening primrose , which belong to the same family . The risk of infestation is lower here if these plants do not grow near the fuchsias.
The whitefly also belongs to the leaf-sucking insects. However, it does more damage by excreting a sticky honeydew that coats the leaf surface and on which the sooty fungus settles. Severely affected leaves are no longer able to assimilate.
The larvae of the black weevil mainly damage the root system, since the larvae of this beetle feed on roots and can destroy the entire root system of a fuchsia. The larvae of various species of fungus gnat do the same . They occur mainly in greenhouse crops where peat is used a lot .
Wasps and earwigs, on the other hand, damage the flowers. Wasps bite oval holes in the calyx tube in order to get to the flower nectar . Major damage can occur especially when fuchsia plants are close to wasp nests . It has also already been observed in mice that they nibble on the flowers in order to get the nectar.
Fuchsias in ornamental plant culture
Introductory story
In Santo Domingo the genus was discovered and described in 1696 by the Paulaner Pater and botanist Charles Plumier . He named the species he discovered after the German botanist Leonhart Fuchs (1501–1566) Fuchsia triphylla flore coccineo , which translates as three-leaved fuchsia with scarlet flowers. Carl von Linné took over the first two words when he founded the system of binary plant names in 1753 and called the species Fuchsia triphylla . Since then the genus has been called Fuchsia .
Most species of fuchsia were discovered in the first half of the 19th century and were mainly introduced to Great Britain . Because of the interest that gardeners showed in these plants, larger nurseries even equipped their own expeditions to bring new fuchsias to England in addition to other plants. For example, the botanist and explorer William Lobb was sent to South America by the Veitch and Sons company in Exeter . Fuchsia excorticata , which originated in New Zealand, first came to Europe in 1821, followed by Fuchsia aborescens in 1823 and Fuchsia microphylla in 1827 . The German botanist Karl Theodor Hartweg collected from 1836 to 1843 on behalf of the Royal Horticultural Society in Central America and sent among others Fuchsia splendens and Fuchsia fulgens to Europe. In the middle of the 19th century, botanists counted 64 pure species. However, various plants that were then classified as species are now viewed as forms of other species.
The Fuchsia triphylla discovered and described by Plumier had not reached Europe as a living plant. On the way back he was shipwrecked and lost all the plants he had collected. His notes, which formed the basis of his book Nova Plantarum Americanum Genera , published in 1703, had been sent to Europe on another ship. Between 1728 and 1732 the Scottish botanist William Houstoun found seeds of this species and sent them to Great Britain. The plants grown from it, however, were all lost again. It was not found until 1873 at its first place of discovery in Santo Domingo by Thomas Hogg and seeds were collected again. The Kew Gardens attracted from these seed plants. It has since been represented in fuchsia collections by private individuals and in botanical gardens . More important than cultivation as a pure species, however, is their share in the breeding of so-called grape-flowered fuchsias, all of which are fuchsia triphylla hybrids.
Breeding history
Soon after the introduction of the first fuchsia species to Europe, different species began to be crossed with one another. Above all, attempts were made to cultivate new varieties with the species Fuchsia magellanica as one of the parent plants. In 1840 a gardener for an English country pastor succeeded in creating a hybrid that had a white tube, white falls and a blue corolla . This variety was marketed under the name Venus Victrix from 1842 and can still be seen in some fuchsia collections today. Numerous hybrids that are cultivated today and that have a white calyx tube can be traced back to this plant. Fuchsias were also valued as cut flowers with which the multi-tiered flower pots and centerpieces of the Victorian era were decorated.
In the 1840s there was an enthusiasm for fuchsias across Europe. In 1844, the first book was published in France under the title Le Fuchsia, son Histoire et sa Culture , which dealt exclusively with fuchsias. It was published by Felix M. Porcher, President of the Orléans Horticultural Society . 300 species and cultivars are already described.
In 1853 the first fully double-flowered variety was bred. The scarlet fuchsia ( Fuchsia magellanica ) is one of the parent plants of many hybrids . Fuchsia fulgens is primarily involved in long-flowered fuchsias . The small-flowered wild species can only be found today in botanical gardens and collections of fuchsia lovers. The plants that are regularly offered in stores are almost exclusively hybrids.
In Germany , too , there was increasing interest in fuchsias. In its first issue from 1848, the German magazine for gardening and floristry described in detail the newly introduced species Fuchsia serratifolia and Fuchsia macrantha . One of the first German fuchsia growers was Gottlob Pfitzer . Carl Bonstedt , who among other things was director of the Botanical Garden in Göttingen , introduced the Triphylla hybrids known as grape-flowered fuchsias.
The European enthusiasm for fuchsias, in which numerous new varieties were bred, especially in the second half of the 19th century, continued until the outbreak of the First World War . The nurseries across Europe then concentrated on growing fruit and vegetables. Coals for heating the glass houses were no longer available. Even in the time of the global economic crisis after 1929 there was only very little demand for this plant genus in Europe. The further breeding of fuchsias took place mainly in North American California . Fuchsias do very well as garden shrubs in the mild, humid coastal areas of this US state. Because of the even climate, they bloom almost all year round and, as one of the few maintenance measures, only need to be cut into shape in December. The first fuchsia society is therefore the American Fuchsia Society , which was founded in 1929. As early as 1930, a three-person delegation from this society traveled to Great Britain, where they collected 51 species and varieties of fuchsia and sent cuttings and seeds to the University of California and a well-known California nursery. 48 species and varieties survived the long sea voyage and established a new fuchsia renaissance in California.
The American Fuchsia Society has been the international registry for new varieties of fuchsia since the end of World War II . The name of the breeder, the parent plants, flower color and shape as well as the growth characteristics and other essential characteristics of the plant are recorded. Above all, the international registry ensures that the name given to the variety is only used once for a fuchsia variety.
Fuchsias have only regained popularity in the last few decades. The first German fuchsia exhibition took place in Bad Neuenahr in 1978 and the second in 1979 at the Federal Garden Show in Bonn . The German Fuchsia Society was founded in 1981.
Breeder and breeding goals
To date, over 7,000 varieties of fuchsia have been bred worldwide. The breeders include both amateur gardeners and professional gardeners. Numerous new varieties are mainly grown in the USA, Great Britain and the Netherlands . However, a few varieties will prevail in the long run. Most of the new varieties are similar to existing fuchsias and do not have any characteristics that set them apart.
One of the most important breeding goals of the current fuchsia culture is to use varieties that are more resistant to low temperatures. In addition, attempts are made to use fuchsia varieties that stand out from others through the color of their flowers. For example, there is a lack of varieties that have a blue crown that does not fade over time. There are also no varieties with pure yellow flowers.
Use of fuchsias
Locations for fuchsias
Very few species and varieties of fuchsia are suitable for indoor cultivation. Most species suffer from insufficient humidity in centrally heated rooms. It is also incompatible for the plants to stand on a window sill with a radiator under it. They also do not tolerate direct sunlight, but must be very bright. On the other hand, the method of placing the fuchsia pots in larger cachepots, which are filled with moist peat or another water-storing substrate, has proven itself. This creates a sufficiently humid microclimate around the plant. The flowers of fuchsias also excrete large quantities of sugary nectar , which can damage the furniture. The nectar also drips onto the leaves where it leaves a sticky mass. In the open air, this layer is washed away by the rain. In greenhouses and living rooms, however, the leaves must be regularly sprayed with water and cleaned.
Fuchsias are cultivated in window boxes or as a container plant more often than in living rooms. They are particularly suitable for balconies or terraces facing north. Fuchsias are one of the few species that have plenty of flowers in a rainy summer, as they thrive best at a temperature between 16 and 24 degrees Celsius and high humidity. In high temperatures and dry weather, it is necessary to regularly spray the plants with water. If the humidity is too low, the buds wither and the leaves fall off prematurely. The root ball should also not dry out. Fuchsia trunks are particularly popular as patio plants. Occasionally, the tall trunks are sunk into the ground with the pot. This allows not hardy fuchsias to be taken out of the ground in autumn and to overwinter in bright rooms.
Wintering of fuchsias
Fuchsia varieties that are not hardy must be overwintered frost-free. If they are overwintered in the dark, they lose all leaves. Watering should be kept to a minimum during this time, otherwise the plants will be attacked by gray mold. Shoots of large plants are shortened by about a third before they are put away.
Some fuchsia varieties have sufficient winter hardiness to survive the Central European winter. These are mostly varieties that have Fuchsia magellanica as the parent plant. The species Fuchsia procumbens , which originates from New Zealand, is even suitable for planting in rock gardens . Fuchsias that hibernate outdoors are placed a little deeper when planted and protected from excessively hard winter frosts with dry brushwood or a fleece.
Use of fuchsias as a crop
Fuchsias have not established themselves in European folk medicine - presumably because of their late introduction. On the other hand, there is very little information about medicinal use in the countries of origin. Apparently, however, the foliage and bark of Fuchsia magellanica are said to have healing properties.
Fuchsia excorticata and Fuchsia procumbens are characterized by blue pollen, which was used by female Māori for face paintingin their country of origin, New Zealand.
Trivia
Gregor Mendel , the Augustinian monk , who was the first to describe the rules of inheritance, the so-called Mendelian rules , was one of those who made the fuchsia their favorite plant in the 19th century. When he was elected abbot of his monastery in 1868 , he chose a fuchsia flower for his coat of arms.
The house where Leonhart Fuchs was born in Wemding , known as the "Fox House" or "Dwarf House" (it is only 1.50 meters wide), has been preserved and is open to visitors. Wemding, "Fuchsienstadt" in its own description, is the location of Germany's only fuchsia pyramid. There is also a fuchsia market, a fuchsia exhibition and a fuchsia tour in the city.
Types (selection)
- Fuchsia boliviana Carrière , origin: Central and South America
- Fuchsia caucana P.E. Berry , home: Colombia
- Fuchsia ceracea P.E. Berry , home: Peru
- Fuchsia cinerea P.E. Berry , home: Colombia, Ecuador
- Fuchsia cochabambana P.E. Berry , home: Bolivia
- Fuchsia cordifolia Benth. , Home: Mexico
- Fuchsia crassistipula P.E. Berry , home: Colombia
- Fuchsia denticulata Ruiz & Pav. , Origin: Peru, Bolivia
- Fuchsia excorticata ( JR Forst. & G. Forst. ) Lf , home: New Zealand
- Fuchsia ferreyrae P.E. Berry , home: Peru
- Fuchsia fulgens Moç. & Sessé ex DC. , Home: Mexico
- Fuchsia gehrigeri Munz , home: Venezuela
- Fuchsia magdalenae Munz , home: Colombia
- Scarlet Fuchsia ( Fuchsia magellanica Lam. ), Origin: Chile
- Fuchsia orientalis P.E. Berry , home: Ecuador
- Fuchsia paniculata Lindl. , Home: Mexico, Central America
- Fuchsia procumbens R. Cunn. ex A. Cunn. , Home: New Zealand
- Fuchsia regia ( Vand. Ex Vell. ) Munz , home: Brazil
- Fuchsia sanctae-rosae Kuntze , home: Peru, Bolivia
- Fuchsia sanmartina P.E. Berry , home: Peru
- Fuchsia sessilifolia Benth. , Home: Colombia, Ecuador
- Fuchsia simplicicaulis Ruiz & Pav. , Origin: Peru
- Fuchsia splendens Zucc. , Home: Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica
- Fuchsia steyermarkii P.E. Berry , home: Ecuador
- Fuchsia triphylla L. , home: Hispaniola
- Fuchsia vargasiana Munz ex Vargas , origin : Peru
Notice
The so-called "fuchsia" Australia in the genus Eremophila are as much as those from South Africa originating Kapfuchsien ( Phygelius ) to the family of Figworts (Scrophulariaceae) and include the genus Fuchsia no close relatives.
See also
Fuchsin , a red-blue tar dye named after fuchsias
literature
- Gerda Manthey: Fuchsias . Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 1987, ISBN 3-8001-6348-9
- Miep Nijhuis: Fuchsia Atlas . Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 1994, ISBN 3-8001-6546-5
- Andreas Fellner: Fuchsias. Rearing and care . Av book, ISBN 978-3-7040-2253-0
- Heinz-Dieter Krausch : Imperial crown and peonies red ... - Discovery and introduction of our garden flowers. Dölling and Galitz Verlag, Hamburg 2003, ISBN 3-935549-23-7
- Walter Erhardt among others: The big pikeperch. Encyclopedia of Plant Names . Volume 2. Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2008. ISBN 978-3-8001-5406-7
Web links
- European Fuchsia Associations
- German Fuchsien-Gesellschaft eV
- German Dahlia, Fuchsia and Gladiolus Society
- Fuchsia index with approx. 12,000 varieties, 3,400 of them with photos, and references to sources
- Australian Fuchsia Society
- American Fuchsia Society website
- Fuchsia hybrids
Individual evidence
- ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original dated August 20, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. web site of the city of Wemding on the fuchsia pyramid, accessed on Aug. 20, 2018
