Phygelius Blacher - Cape Fuchsia

The Phygelius x rectus 'Blacher', often sold under the name 'Cherry Ripe', is a variety of Cape Fuchsia renowned for its upright habit and its bright cherry red flowering. With its long summer flowering in long tubular bells, this bushy perennial plant is a beautiful alternative to hardy fuchsias for the decoration of our gardens and terraces. If well protected in winter, it can regrow from its stump, this variety grows quickly and flowers throughout the summer, starting from the year of planting. The Cape Fuchsia thrives in a cool but well-drained soil, in full sun or partial shade.

Perhaps called Cape Fuchsia due to the shape of its flowers and foliage, Phygelius is an herbaceous undershrub with woody base, evergreen in its original climate, considered a bushy perennial in cold climates. It belongs to the Scrophulariaceae family, not the Onagraceae family, which includes the well-known genus Fuchsia. The 'Cherry Ripe' variety is a British horticultural hybrid dating back to the 2000s, obtained by cross-breeding the pink-purple-flowered Phygelius aequalis 'Sensation' with the hybrid origin P. (x) rectus. Its hardiness is approximately equivalent to that of Fuchsia magellanica (-10/-12°C (14/10.4°F)). The stump produces underground stolons that allow the plant to spread without becoming invasive.

 'Blacher' stands out for its distinctly upright habit and the bright cherry red to pink-red color of its long tubular flowers. They are grouped in unilateral spikes of 20 to 30 cm (8 to 12in), at the end of bare branches with a burgundy color, which rise above dark green foliage. They bloom throughout the summer on a bush that is on average 75 cm (30in) tall and wide, almost fully grown within a few months. Each flower, in the form of a slender trailing trumpet, is carried by a curving peduncle of purplish color. The corolla forms a very elongated tube, sometimes reaching 5 cm (2in) in length, open with 5 lobes, from which violet stamens and pistil emerge. A lighter throat can be seen at the center of the flower. The foliage consists of simple, ovate leaves with toothed margins, and its color is a fairly dark green.

The Phygelius 'Blacher' will find its place in sunny or partially shaded beds, for example alongside Fuchsia magellanica 'Tricolor' or 'Alba', blue or white agapanthus, and asters that will take over after its flowering. It can be interesting to position it at a height, above a low wall, in a rockery or raised bed, or even in a large hanging basket, in order to observe the flower from below. Phygelius are perennials that bring an exotic touch to wild-looking beds, as their smaller flowers compared to penstemons and richer colors attract many pollinating insects. 'Cherry Ripe' will look magnificent next to a Dierama with violet or white flowers (Guinevere) and a Miscanthus yaku Jima, along a short grass meadow. Its association with perennial or shrubby salvias is also very successful. Phygelius also grows very well in pots.