Old growth fuschia and white flies

19 years ago

First of all, thank you for this amazing forum.

Two years ago I moved into a 45 year old house in zone 9 (hot hot hot) with a large stand of old fuschia bushes . I never thought they could grow in this zone, but go figure. Anyhow, they get a great deal of sun, and while they look nice in spring, by mid-summer they are generally infested with white flies and look ratty. I cut them all back in mid-august and the process starts again. I am convinced that a:

they get too much sun and b: they can't handle the infestation each year. I haven't got the heart to tear them out, they make a nice screen on this east facing side of the house. SO...should I spray? With what? What else is recommended for their survival? Thanks a million!

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Comments (6)

fuchsiabonsailady
19 years ago
Hi Tufluv,
Yes, zone 9 is a bit hot for them, but as they are planted in the garden and not in pots, this in itself helps to keep the roots cool.

In your climate, after you have cut them down, dig into the ground around them some well rotted manure, they are greedy feeders. Once they start to shoot again feed them a balanced feed once a week. Also try to keep the soil damp around them in the summer, by watering in the evening.

In respect of trying to keep the white fly under control, start spraying with an insecticide as soon as the new growth appears, only do this when the sun is not shining on them. If you don't like using chemicals, then a soft-soap spray is just as good, not detergent. Hope this helps you, please come back if you have more questions - Kath:)
melrt968
19 years ago
I have found the systemic insecticide Provado (Imidachloprid) to be very effective in controlling whitefly as well as vine weevil on Fuchsias in pots.
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fuchsiabonsailady
19 years ago
Yes Ron,
Me too, but I don't think it is available in the USA, at least I haven't seen anyone mention it here or on other US garden websites. I know they use a lot of Neem products but have only seen it here for sale on one website and its very expensive here. - Kath:)
andy_e
19 years ago
You're right - Imidachloprid is not widely available in the US. Regardless, I would start with the least toxic and work up from there. Start with hosing them off several days in a row. This may disrupt them enough to get them looking for another place to hang out. If that doesn't work try insecticidal soap several days in a row. Next try Neem oil.

If none of those work you have to question the whole approach. If this fuchsia is that susceptible a common pest then it may not belong there. I'm not sure if the problem is your zone or just the specific spot where it's planted, but it may be stressed and that would make it susceptible. Tear it out and put something more appropriate in. You may even be able to find another fuchsia enthusiast who will take it off your hands.
andy_e
19 years ago
Found a source for Marathon (imidachloprid) in the US at:

http://www.hortchemicals.com/products.asp?page=3&cat=ins

It's expensive though: $99 for 5 pounds. I have no relationship to the vendor.
Richard Peters
8 years ago
3 years ago My 5 year old fuschias became infested with whiteflies. Much to my dismay all the leaves and flowers were affected. Not knowing what to do I pulled all my plants (roots included) and then crushed them into a ball such that they would more easily fit into our compost waste. Our compost container that week was overflowing with yard waste and coffee grounds (one of my housemates owns a coffee cart); so, I decided to bury this 9 inch ball of fuchsias in the garden. The following year I had 7 new volunteer plants. These plants seem much more resistant to whiteflies and they haven't been affected by them for 3 years. So resistant infact that I took a heavily affected, potted fuchsia (belonging to a friend ) and set it squarely in the center of my plants. None of the flies moved to my plants, they did stay on the potted planted until it was dead. I have not sprayed them with anything but water.

I buried the potted plant in the same fashion at my friends house, I is It is volunteering two new plants. Previous garden use before mine used the garden as a bog, feeding it only distilled water ( for a collection of carnivorous plants ) they all died so I added 5 cubic yards of top soil and peat.

Old growth fuschia and white flies

Comments (6)

fuchsiabonsailady

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