Fuchsia Surface Roots Show Us How To Water

This photograph doesn't show it very well, but the surface lateral feeder root which emerged horizontal from the side of the compost has turned downward, following the lowering water level as the surface dries out.

Most don't realise it, but many plants - including fuchsias and dahlias - produce surface fibrous feeding roots, as well as tap roots for anchorage and access to water reserves deeper in the soil. The surface roots spread out widely and usually follow the soil surface, even if it is uneven.

From observation, it would appear that fuchsia roots prefer almost dry compost. It has to be changing colour (as it is here) before they reject it. Using clear plastic pots, we can learn how to water our plants so that roots grow throughout the whole cup (pot), even close to the surface. Keeping this surface layer too dry, as many growers do for fear of over-watering, is a waste of potential. Perhaps surface spraying is the best way to water these plants, with the lower layers fed by water trickling down by gravity.

This pot has hardly been watered since last October. I have now watered the surface and marked the position of the root tip to see if it turns up towards the surface. It is not uncommon to see fuchsia roots on the surface of damp compost. Perhaps they are coming up for air, I don't know.