AusBonsai

When is the best time to repot a pyracantha that is dreadfully pot bound

Today

If the buds are swelling, it would be an ideal time. If not, maybe wait until they do swell, (fairly soon in Sydney) for maximum transplant vigour as you will probably need to do some brutal root work.

Just my 2c.,

Gavin

pyracantha's are ever green trees. I thought repotting in the warmer months say mid spring would be safer. I have a couple and i repot mid spring

Pyracantha are a very tough weedy plant. That means that they can tolerate more abuse than some other species which would explain why we have such a diverse range of opinions on repotting time.
I've been doing mine whenever they need it and I have the time and they seem to manage just fine. Any time from mid winter through to late spring should be OK and I suspect autumn repotting would also be OK.

shibui wrote: ↑August 5th, 2020, 7:03 pm Pyracantha are a very tough weedy plant. That means that they can tolerate more abuse than some other species which would explain why we have such a diverse range of opinions on repotting time.
I've been doing mine whenever they need it and I have the time and they seem to manage just fine. Any time from mid winter through to late spring should be OK and I suspect autumn repotting would also be OK.

Sorry for going off topic...
Mate mine suddenly dropped all it's leaves mid autumn last. Couldn't figure out why...drought, fungi..don't know.
I took it into the greenhouse and kept it damp. Luckily it slowely started growing small new leaves again. It's full now, but the leaves stayed small. It needs a repot this year. You think it'll handle one? I won't trim any roots...just light clean and slip pot.
Also...any idea why it dropped it's leaves? Is it known to do that when it gets some or other stress?

Mate mine suddenly dropped all it's leaves mid autumn last. Couldn't figure out why...drought, fungi..don't know.
I took it into the greenhouse and kept it damp. Luckily it slowely started growing small new leaves again. It's full now, but the leaves stayed small. It needs a repot this year. You think it'll handle one? I won't trim any roots...just light clean and slip pot.
Also...any idea why it dropped it's leaves? Is it known to do that when it gets some or other stress?

Dropping leaves is usually a sign of stress in all trees, pyracantha included. The real problem is to work out what the stress was.
Your mention that it needs a repot could be a clue. Trees that are root bound are notoriously difficult to water properly so it is possible the tree got dry for a day or 2 and dropped leaves to conserve water.
If a tree needs repotting I would opt to repot even if the tree is a bit weak. If the tree is weak because it needs a repot then postponing repot can only make the tree worse. How you do it depends what you find. If there are few roots just change the mix but leave roots as intact as possible. If it is very congested you will need to cut roots but the tree should be better for that after.

Thanks all, repot done, good root prune, seasol and now rain. It was very root bound!
Would post a photo but can't work out how.

Hailun wrote: ↑August 7th, 2020, 10:01 am Would post a photo but can't work out how.

when posting go to attachements down below and add your photos. Make sure you resize them first ( I do @ 800x600dpi) as file size limits are in place

Ken