Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes' bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Dark Eyes fuchsia, Double trailing fuchsia (Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes').

More about fuchsia 'dark eyes'

About Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes'

Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes' · also called Dark Eyes fuchsia, Double trailing fuchsia · flowering

Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes' is a popular double-flowered trailing cultivar producing an abundance of deep violet-blue corollas with red-pink tubes and sepals. Ideal for hanging baskets, it blooms prolifically from summer to autumn in cool, humid conditions. Mildly toxic if ingested by pets.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Botrytis: Grey mould thrives on spent double flowers trapped against foliage. Deadhead regularly and maintain good air movement around the basket.

The reasons fuchsia 'dark eyes' isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming fuchsia 'dark eyes' traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding fuchsia 'dark eyes' a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get fuchsia 'dark eyes' to flower

Maximise sun. Give fuchsia 'dark eyes' the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for fuchsia 'dark eyes' and get the feeding right with the fuchsia 'dark eyes' fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes' flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full fuchsia 'dark eyes' care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes' blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my fuchsia 'dark eyes' flower?

Fuchsia 'Dark Eyes' blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make fuchsia 'dark eyes' bloom?

Give fuchsia 'dark eyes' the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does fuchsia 'dark eyes' normally bloom?