Pyracantha will survive in a large container if it receives a regular supply of water but will only look its best if planted in the garden where after the first season of watering regularly will look after itself.

I agree with Jimmythe one.Would it be possible to get down to soil under whatever it is that makes it imperative that you plant in a pot. I don't think its roots would interfere with buildings etc nor dislodge slabs unless anyone knows differently. If you do decide to put it in a pot it will perform well with quite hard pruning to keep it the size and shape you want but the bigger the pot the better. Prune by snipping away unwanted growth as it appears.

Hi, thanks both. It would be possible to plant in the ground but the area is total clay and gets waterlogged. I had a Russian Vine in there which never did well and just completely died last year. I was reluctant to plant anything else in the same spot of ground and wondered if planting in a pot would work. Maybe not.

The solution is to dig out the clay for at least twice the size of the root ball of the plant which you are planting (depth as well as side ways) and replace it with ericaceous compost.By the time the roots reach the clay the plant will be strong enough to survive anything. You could incorporate some grit in to the clay at the bottom of the hole you have dug to give extra drainage. New plantings need to be kept watered for their first summer. Pyracantha is a very easy plant to grow.

Thank you Scotsgran, I think that's a good idea that I could try (will enlist hubby's help to dig out the clay!) However, the other point to mention is that this area gets very little direct sunshine, although plenty of light in that it's against a fence that has no other foliage nearby, no tree shade, etc. Will that have any bearing on whether I could plant a pyracantha in this spot?

Well you could plant it, but to be honest, they never look as healthy planted in shady areas, tending to grow lanky without an abundance of foliage. You might be better off choosing something that will like the prevailing conditions. And by the way, if you want a Pyracantha in a pot, the best choice is a variegated one like P. Mohave Silver - they're smaller than the non variegated ones, but unfortunately slightly less hardy, though usually do fine in Zone 8, which is most of the UK.

This problem of sun light keeps on raising its head and given that we have seen very little in the way of sunshine this year my pyracanthas on a fence east of the house have done brilliantly well. You can judge for yourself by looking at my latest blog.

We've got one in the grounds here that faces west, and its in fine fettle this year - but all you need is afternoon sun and that's a lot of hours of sunlight. In your case, morning sun, obviously, Scotsgran - given the sun's up by 4 a.m. in high summer, even if it clouds over by 11, its had plenty.

Scotsgran, your pyracantha looks absolutely lovely. I may well just take a chance and see what happens. Thanks for all the advice from everyone, much appreciated!

I grew one once in the shade of a large sycamore, against a fence, poor thing. It got only a little sunshine but it berried very well. Worth a try

Thank you Steragram, that's reassuring.

i think as a general rule of thumb all plants would prefer being in the soil as aposed to a pot . ever thaught of getting some old mirrors in your shady areas so it reflects light into the shady bits . it also makes your garden look much bigger .

I have nosey but where do you get ones that won't crack at the first sign of frost.

Restaurants have Polystyrene boxes in just now containing their chilled Calabrese shoots and Brussel Sprouts. If you have one that serves these vegetables its well worth going round the back to their rubbish heap, and you should find the Polystyrene boxes before the Council lorry takes them away to the tip. I now have 3 on my Container Garden (same soil as you) and 4 spares in my shed, to spray paint with stone effect paint (its expensive) to use as troughs. They can also be moved if you need to. Got the idea from a good gardener posting a photo on GYO. Costs nothing.
Planted in good quality compost, with its feet warm, your Pyracantha will be happy.

you can get mirrors made out of plastic and you can get mirrored polythene on a roll thow ive had an old mirror full size from a cupboard in my garden for at least 12 years and its fine . look on my blog or pictures im sure youl find it there somewear . admitadly it has a crack at the bottem but i completly blame myself for banging a metal wheel barrow against it but even with this crack its fine and hasntcracked any more . id have a look on google myself . all answers are on the internet if you ask the right question .

Mirrored polythene on a roll sounds like a good idea. I'll try googling. Thank you.

your more than welcome scotsgran x .