Best in full sun in a well-drained soil and, while drought tolerant, looks best with occasional to infrequent irrigation in summer but only if soil drains well. In heavier soils that don't drain well be careful not to overwater as these plants do not like wet heavy soil in summer – better not water them at all in these conditions. Cold hardy to 5-10 degrees F. After the first year of establishment trim back or shear plants in mid-winter for a neater appearance the following season. As with other California Fuchsia this plant is brittle and breaks easily, so use care in its placement when planting.

Epilobium canum is primarily distributed in southern and central California growing in coastal areas and the foothills up to 5,000 feet but can be found other western states including Arizona, Nevada, Utah and New Mexico north up into Oregon, Idaho and Wyoming where it is mainly found in arid mountainous areas. While the genus name Epilobium is now considered current, this group of sub-shrubs used to be called Zauschneria and are so different from the other Epilobium, herbaceous plants often called Fireweeds, that many California native plant enthusiast and even the experts often still refer to them by this previous name. This former name Zauschneria was given the genus by the Czechoslovakian naturalist Karel (Charles) Borivoj Presl in 1831 to honor his fellow Czech, Johann Baptista Josef Zauschner (1737–1799), a professor of medicine and amateur botanist. The name Epilobium comes from the Greek word 'epi' meaning "upon" and 'lobium' meaning "a pod" in reference to the flowers being superior, meaning that they sit above the developing seed capsules. The specific epithet means "gray" or "ash colored" in reference to the foliage color.

The cultivar 'Catalina' is a plant selected by Mike Evans of Tree of Life Nursery from the Middle Ranch area of Catalina Island in 1987. It was one of the highest rated (#3) California Fuchsia in Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden' s "Horticultural Trials for California Epilobium". We were fortunate to have participated in this trial that rated 30 named cultivars and 2 unnamed clones through 2 seasons of growth from 2003 to 2004 and resulted in a report titled Horticultural Trials for California Epilobium published in October 2005. Likely it would have rated the highest in this report if not for rambunctious growth and subsequent size – for those that want a big California Fuchsia this one is the best! We grew this great large California Fuchsia from 1994 until 2019. 

Information displayed on this page about Epilobium canum 'Catalina' is based on our research conducted about this plant in our nursery library as well as from information provided by reliable online resources. We also include our own observations made about it as it has grown in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers in our nursery field. We will also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.