Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Trailing Fuchsia (Fuchsia procumbens)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Trailing Fuchsia, Creeping Fuchsia, Procumbent Fuchsia.

More about trailing fuchsia

About Trailing Fuchsia

Fuchsia procumbens · also called Trailing Fuchsia, Creeping Fuchsia · flowering

Fuchsia procumbens is a diminutive, ground-hugging trailing perennial endemic to the coastal cliffs and sandy shores of New Zealand's North Island, making it one of the most distinctive and unusual members of the genus. It produces tiny upward-facing flowers with greenish-yellow tubes, deep purple sepals, and bright red-tipped blue stamens — unlike any other fuchsia — followed by showy, large cherry-red berries disproportionate to the tiny plant. The most important care fact is that it is the hardiest fuchsia species from the Southern Hemisphere, surviving temperatures to around -5°C (23°F) in a sheltered position, but still requires protection in most UK winters beyond the mildest coastal zones. Fuchsia is listed as non-toxic to cats and dogs by the ASPCA.

Cold limit: USDA 8-11 · RHS H3 (-5 to 22°C)

Watch for — Winter wet and crown rot: The main cause of loss is cold, wet compost in winter rather than frost alone. Bring container-grown plants under glass in October, keep almost dry, and ensure there is excellent drainage at all times to prevent crown rot at the soil level.

What trailing fuchsia's hardiness rating actually means

Trailing Fuchsia is half-hardy (RHS H3). It survives a mild winter outdoors in a sheltered spot, but a hard frost kills it — so in colder zones it is lifted, potted, or grown as a tender plant. Its RHS rating of H3 means: Half-hardy — comes through mild UK winters outside but is killed by a hard freeze. On the US scale that maps to USDA 8-11 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −5 to 1 °C — a light, short frost only. Trailing Fuchsia shrugs off cold nights but a real, sustained freeze will kill it.

Concretely, for trailing fuchsia as it gets too cold:

Down to roughly about −5 to 1 °C it copes, especially if dry and sheltered.
A sustained hard frost collapses the top growth; whether it returns depends on whether the roots, crown or tubers froze.
Wet cold is far more lethal than dry cold for this plant — soggy, frozen soil is the usual killer.

Can trailing fuchsia go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can live outside year-round only in the mildest, most sheltered part of USDA 8-11 or a frost-free UK microclimate.
In colder zones, grow it in a pot you can move under cover, or lift its tubers/roots and store them frost-free over winter.
A south-facing wall, free-draining soil and a dry winter position can push it a full zone hardier than the books suggest.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when trailing fuchsia can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H3 figure above.

Frost protection for borderline trailing fuchsia

Trailing Fuchsia is right on a hardiness edge in many gardens, so if you are pushing it, these measures buy it the margin it needs:

Mulch the crown or root zone deeply with bark, straw or leaf-mould before the first hard frost.
Move container plants against a warm wall or into an unheated but frost-free porch or greenhouse.
Fleece the top growth on the coldest nights, and keep it on the dry side — dry roots survive cold far better than wet ones.
Lift dahlia-type tubers or tender crowns after the first light frost blackens the foliage and store them somewhere cool but frost-free.

Trailing Fuchsia hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is trailing fuchsia cold hardy?

Trailing Fuchsia is half-hardy (RHS H3). It survives a mild winter outdoors in a sheltered spot, but a hard frost kills it — so in colder zones it is lifted, potted, or grown as a tender plant. Borderline outdoors. In its mild end of USDA 8-11 (and sheltered UK gardens) trailing fuchsia can stay out; in colder areas it must be lifted, brought in, or treated as a frost-tender plant.

What is the minimum temperature trailing fuchsia can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −5 to 1 °C — a light, short frost only. Trailing Fuchsia shrugs off cold nights but a real, sustained freeze will kill it.

What hardiness zone is trailing fuchsia?

Trailing Fuchsia is rated USDA 8-11 and RHS H3 — Half-hardy — comes through mild UK winters outside but is killed by a hard freeze.

Can trailing fuchsia survive winter outside?

It can live outside year-round only in the mildest, most sheltered part of USDA 8-11 or a frost-free UK microclimate. In colder zones, grow it in a pot you can move under cover, or lift its tubers/roots and store them frost-free over winter. A south-facing wall, free-draining soil and a dry winter position can push it a full zone hardier than the books suggest.

How do I protect trailing fuchsia from frost?

Mulch the crown or root zone deeply with bark, straw or leaf-mould before the first hard frost. Move container plants against a warm wall or into an unheated but frost-free porch or greenhouse. Fleece the top growth on the coldest nights, and keep it on the dry side — dry roots survive cold far better than wet ones. Lift dahlia-type tubers or tender crowns after the first light frost blackens the foliage and store them somewhere cool but frost-free.