Fuchsia

my lady Boothby did well for 4 yrs and then it didn't do much for 2 years then died. I hope yours isn't going to copy mine.

my David is huge and really does need a good chop this spring. I didn't do it this year as it had flowers all through the winter.

We have 'Grayrigg' which has grown enormous over the last few 4 years, at least 4ft high x 6ft which was a surprise. The more elaborate doubles have surprised by their growth too along the side if the house. 'Sharpitor' we also have in the back garden but it isn't as big as yours as it is swamped by roses and physocarpus.
For me, the jury is out on climbing varieties. I had 'Lady Boothby' twice but it didn't do much. A bit of a gimmick, i thougt, although I loved the colours.

Thank you for your findings on Fuchsia varieties. I find Fuchsias difficult to place in my cottagey style garden (read jam packed!). I don't want to grow wide spreading Fuchsias, take up to much lateral space, only tall ones.

I don’t have any fuchsias, Siris. I don’t no id have the room to be honest. I’ve always favoured other flowering shrubs ahead of the fuchsias. My neighbour’s grow them and they seem to do well.

I like Fuchsias, we once had nearly 200 varieties, but I've never been able to grow Sharpitor, it always dies. It's nice to know it does well in your garden.
I agree some hardy ones can get out of control and they do need drastic pruning sometimes.

Thank you for your findings everyone. It's so useful having feedback from other growers.
'Thugs' Corner' has such lousy soil its where I put misbehaving plants, but when I want to remove them it's such a job, dries rook hard in summer and have to put water on in order to get the fork in, then it turns to pudding clay with stones.

I read somewhere a couple of years agothat a chicken mite spray was good gor gall mite so my son got me a bottle from his agricultural wholesaler. At the beginning of the year I sprayed all mine and I have to say , the leaves wrinkled and I thought I'd killed them but they bounced back and touch wood have been good ever since. They were all cut back to nothing and put in the greenhouse in late September apart from the hardies that live outside, but I would do the same again next year.

Thanks Thorney. All my Fuchsias are hardy ones which live outside, so cutting to ground level is my best option.