Pyracantha (Firethorn) repotting

Just thinking out loud really, my aged Firethorn was well and truly caught by the freezing conditions here in the SW of England during December. How I missed it it for over-wintering is beyond me.

Anyway, it has been in the unheated greenhouse since late December and is still alive. No new growth is visible, not a trace, and still leaves are continuing to turn and drop. I believe the root ball has been badly damaged during the freezing conditions (-14c for a couple of nights), it should have been repotted two years ago ... sigh, so roots are going to be tight to the pot edges.

So what would you do?

1. Wait to see if anything happens in terms of new growth.

2. Repot now to hopefully invigorate the root ball.

I fully appreciate this species can be a swine to respond when repotted. It dithers every time I repot but thankfully has always regained strength and grown well.

Leaves went very dark, not black but very-very dark during the cold spell. Some of the existing leaves look OK but just some. Cambium is green when revealed on every branch. It is still hanging on to leaves on all branches bar one. Soil in pot is tight as heck, so feel it is a mass of roots.

I can of course provide fully protected post care.

Thoughts?

Mike

I say repot it but don't cut the roots. Put it in a larger pot for a year or two. If as you suspect the freeze damaged some of the roots, then your Pyracantha needs all the roots it has in order to recover. Aside from that, do not expect to see new growth until you have warm weather. Pyracanthas are mediterranean plants, and they like warm weather and mild winters.