Fuchsia guests from South Africa

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Fuchsia Guests from South Africa

From August 1 1997 I recommend the Fuchsia Forum
Från den 1 augusti 1997 rekommenderar jag Fuchsia Forum

From: "jan wiggelinkhuizen" <wigglink@iafrica.com>
To: "Kenneth Nilsson" <kenneth.nilsson@mbox3.swipnet.se>
Subject: Angel's Dream
Date: Fri, 27 Jun 1997

Kenneth
I have read Rob Wucherpfennig's comments on Angel's Dream and found a picture of this cultivar in Procumbens Fuchsias volume One page 4, published by Procumbens Publishing, 18 Churton Drive, Churton Park, WELLINGTON 4, New Zealand. Rob is correct - his Angel's Dream is in fact the one and yours is another, but I do not know which. I have made a print out and will show it to our experts.
I am working on the Top Ten in South Africa - I think there will be a difference of opinion. We tend to have as the Top Ten the cultivars most suitable for Show purposes as in the UK (Carol Gubler's Top Ten) - these are the more floriferous cultivars which do not necessarily have the most beautiful flowers.
Some of my own favorites which come to mind are Countess of Aberdeen, Swingtime, Marinka, Coachman, Mickey Goult, Pio Pica, Swanley Gem, Devonshire Dumpling, Walz Mandolin, Harry Gray (my best on Show last year)Jenny Sorenson, Black Prince, Heirloom, Wendy's Beauty and so on. There are so many!
By the way my e-mail address appears under the South African Fuchsia Society's address - though I belong to both the SA and Western Cape Societies I hold no exco post in the former and the address is better placed under the WCFS.
I had several interesting replies and comments from all over via your Webpage including offers for the BFS Annuals - great to be on the Net! I have not read everything on your Webpages but would like to know more about you and your fuchsias - I shall look further!
Kind regards
Jan - Cape Town wigglink@iafrica.com

I replied:

Hi Jan,
I am also sure Rob is right. The first name I got on this fuchsia (it's not one of mine) was Angel's Flight, bit it's supposed to have deep pink sepals, so that had to be wrong too... I am glad you had contacts through that e-mail link. That's what the WWW is for, isn't it? I have moved that e-mail address to WCFS.
Looking forward to a Top Ten List...
Kenneth

PS: Isn't it amazing that your "coming-to-mind" fuchsias seem to be around here too. I happened to have pictures of most of them. I mean we are not neighbours...

Thursday June 26 (also see below June 25)
From: "ROB WUCHERPFENNIG" <rob@herzliah.wcape.school.za>
Hi Kenneth

I E-Mailed you yesterday (about Angel's Dream) and in the interim I have found a picture that I took of it. I've scanned it, saved it as a JPEG file and am attaching it here. I don't know enough about graphics files to know the best way to read this file, but you can pick it up through MSWord.
It clearly shows the serrations at the bottom of the petals. (It also shows a rather badly diseased leaf!). I looked up the description of Angel's Dream in two books last night - they both mention the serrations at the bottom of the petals).
I hope this info helps - I think your site is very interesting and have been spending hours looking around it - keep up the great work.
All the best
ROB WUCHERPFENNIG

Date: Wed, 25 Jun 1997

From: Herzlia High School WWW user <www@herzliah.wcape.school.za>
Organization: Herzlia High School
To: kenneth.nilsson@mbox3.swipnet.se
Subject: Angel's Dream

Dear Kenneth
My name is Rob, I'm a South African (Cape Town), and I'm 34. I'm pretty new to the Internet but Fuchsias are my biggest hobby. I've just been growing for about 3 years so I'm pretty new to it all, but I've made friends with a lady who has worked with Fuchsias for over 30 years. She is not able to maintain a big collection any more and has passed most of the varieties (about 200 - in the form of cuttings) on to me. Angel's Dream was one of these. It's a great basket variety - very strong - and a sister seedling of Nancy Lou (although I'm sure that you know all this already). The picture you have shown is possibly NOT Angel's Dream, which has a very pronounced frill on the edge of the petals of the corolla. I'm sorry I don't know what the fuchsia in your picture is, but if my plants are correct (and according to my friend, they are), this isn't Angel's Dream.
Thanks very much for a great site - I haven't had time to work through it all yet - I will be doing so in the near future and I'll E-Mail you again with any info I might have.
Thanks again
Rob

I replied (but mail bounced back. Please Rob...) The mail above contained another e-mail address and the reply hasn't bounced back yet (Thursday night)

Hi Rob,
Lovely to hear from South Africa.
I'll keep the question mark at Angel's Deram and hope for someone to find out what it is. I was given the picture with this name on it.
Do you happen to have a picture of YOUR Angel's Dream?
Kenneth

I mailed just to ask if Jan had got my e-mail, and Jan was back:

From: "jan wiggelinkhuizen" <wigglink@iafrica.com>
To: <Kenneth.Nilsson@mbox3.swipnet.se>
Subject: fuchsias
Date: Sun, 22 Jun 1997

Kenneth
Indeed we are still here in South Africa even though our national rugby team(world champions 1996) lost the British Lions over the weekend - a near calamity! Being new to the Internet my eyes are square - I have a new computer system, new (to me) Windows'95, new printer and quite a lot of fuchsias - there are not enough hours in the day! Though retired (at 60 as Professor of Paediatrics) I again work almost fulltime and with our shorter days in winter I do not get enough time for my fuchsias.
We prune and replant our fuchsias end May and almost immediately they sprout again. I am already pinching again in order to shape etc. for a competitive show at the end of November and have not yet replanted all my plants - in fact probably won't - after all plenty of growers use soilless compost which has no nutritional value whatsoever. One should be able to use old soil provided you regularly fertilize which we do anyway. It may be that over a period of time the soil becomes too compacted and for this reason it is wiser to replant and rootprune at the same time. What do you think?
We are due to visit the UK in August and hope to attend some fuchsia shows - London Show and Bournemouth - I have seen a few before and the British show plants are really very impressive and something to strive for. Somehow the British have green fingers!
I have read part of your homepage and am very impressed - it must take a lot of work to update it regularly - you must be retired!!
Should you ever come this way do look us up - we have plenty of space for you and yours to stay with us - we live on Bloubergstrand beach with the well-known view of Table Mountain across the bay and in the "fairest Cape of all"

Kind regards
Jan Wiggelinkhuizen
E-mail wigglink@iafrica.com

I replied:

Hi Jan,

Thank you for the invitation. You live in a place I would certainly not just "happen to pass by"...
This year I have some fuchisas I haven't repotted (lazy) and they seem alright and as healthy as the others. I have been rather good at remembering to feed them though.
What cultivars do you grow down there? Any of the ones we have up here? Can you grow them out in the ground all year?
What about a Top Ten List from South Africa? (Did you see the lists on my page?) You would spice up that page if you can come up with a Top Ten Favourite List of Fuchsias!
Kenneth

From: "jan wiggelinkhuizen" <wigglink@iafrica.com>
To: <kenneth.nilsson@mbox3.swipnet.se>
Subject: fuchsias
Date: Sun, 15 Jun 1997

Dear Kenneth
I am very new to the Internet (this is my first e-mail sent out..!!), not so new to fuchsias -4-5 years!
I have recently pruned (our autumn) a quarter standard of Countess of Aberdeen - one of the branches has NOT sprouted new growth - why not? All 5 other branches (2 layers of 3) have sprouted. Do you rub the remaining nodes with something rough, like a pan scourer, to facilitate sprouting? Can one rub off the new growing points?
Last year I pinched a number of my plants at one node ie after every set of leaves in order to get more compact plants. On pruning I now find that I am left with a blind fork without nodes to sprout from. New growth does seem to develop from the fork even in the absence of any node but only one branch develops instead of two from opposite nodes. It does not seem a good idea to pinch after one set of leaves - any comments?

Kind regards
Jan Wiggelinkhuizen

PS.
I have just discovered my name on the address list of Fuchsia Societies. Kindly add my e-mail address to this.
Thanks
Jan

PPS.
Here at the southern tip of Africa I am very keen to obtain past copies of the BFS Annuals. The Annual is the most informative Fuchsia journal in the English language.
I lack the following copies: 1989, 1984, 1983, 1981, 1980, 1979, 1978, and then from 1976 backwards. We shall be in the UK in August and early September. Anyone willing to part with copies at a fee please contact me.

Many thanks

Jan Wiggelinkhuizen
e-mail address: wigglink@iafrica.com

I replied:

How very nice to hear from South Africa! I have had your society's address here on my page since the start in March 1996, and haven't heard anything until now. Thank you Jan.
It is better not to prune too hard when the fuchsias are to be stored for the winter. If branches die (or rather 'dry' ...) back you may have some nodes left below the die-back.
Some varieties do give new shoots in seemingly blind forks but I haven't figured out which ones. I looked at my Countess of Aberdeen this morning and she is a mystery...the plant is 5-6 years and no bigger than a football. She is tricky with me...
It sounds very harsh to rub the nodes with pan scourers...You would probably damage the little 'growing points' so I off hand don't recommend it. I think the best way to make branches leaf out is to keep the air moist so the bark isn't too hard and dry. Putting an opaque plastic bag over the whole plant, to make a mini greenhouse, is a good way.
Kenneth

PS. Your E-mail address is now on the address page

PPS. I put the request for BFS annuals here to. Hope it can give some help.

Kenneth

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