Fuchsia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Fuchsia
Fuchsia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Myrtales
Family:	Onagraceae
Genus:	Fuchsia L.

A beautiful fuchsia flower

Fuchsia (say "FYOO-shuh") is a type of flowering plant. It's known for its beautiful, often purplish-red flowers. In fact, the color "fuchsia" is named after these plants!

Fuchsia plants are part of a group called the Onagraceae family. There are about 110 different kinds, or species, of fuchsia. Most of them grow as shrubs (like bushes) or small trees.

Discovering Fuchsia

The very first fuchsia plant known to science was Fuchsia triphylla. It was found on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (where Haiti and the Dominican Republic are today). This happened around 1696 or 1697.

A French monk and botanist named Charles Plumier discovered it. He was on his third trip to the Caribbean islands. Plumier decided to name this new group of plants Fuchsia to honor a German botanist named Leonhart Fuchs (who lived from 1501 to 1566).

Images for kids

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  Fuchsia sp. in Japan

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  Fuchsia hybrid

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  Fuchsia regia

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  Selection of cultivated fuchsias at BBC Gardeners' World in 2011

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  'Alice Hoffman'

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  Fuchsia with blossom opened

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  Leonhart Fuchs (1501–1566)

See also

In Spanish: Fuchsia para niños