Fuchsia plant help needed

MartiniChick01

I have a Fuchsia in a hanging basket and it looks terrible.  The base of it looks brown and twiggy and the leaves are sparse.  It has some blooms on it but it has gone down hill since I received it in Spring.

I put it in partial sun/shade, have sprayed it with Dawn dishsoap just in case it had bugs (I saw some tiny green things hanging off some of the leaves, but they weren't moving) and about 2 days ago I gave it some Miracle Grow.  It still doesn't look good.  I know I haven't given the Miracle Grow much time, but somehow I don't think it's really going to help much.

I seem to have this problem every year and have asked my mom to stop giving them to me for Mother's Day because I can't seem to keep them looking nice.

HELP!

Thanks.

Hey Jellisy

They really are just picky and don't like the heat.  They thrive in Ireland where they are more of a shrub to give you an idea of their ideal habitat.  I would move it to full shade and water daily during the heat of the summer.  I love them too, they are so beautiful but having them in Virginia is an exercise in futility for me.  I now just consider them a spring flower in my climate.  Makes me sad.   

MartiniChick01

Thanks.  It's been hotter than normal here in Wisconsin, so that's probably part of it.  I water it daily, but I think I will move it to full shade and see if that helps.

My mom has one and it's beautiful (she also lives in Wisconsin).  She has it on the North side of the house next to the front step.  Maybe I'll move mine to the North side, but unfortunately that's the front of the house and I'm embarassed by how awful it looks!

shammy79

Ugh, They are picky plants, although pretty. I thought mine wanted water every day, but turns out, was starting to get root rot. I went from moving it from the shade to the partial shade-sun, rotating, adjusting water...then just deciding it got too durn hot and gave up!