Growing Firethorn Plant Profile
How to Grow, Use and Maintain Pyracantha Plants in the Garden
Attractive evergreen shrubs can be trained up walls and fences as a colorful backdrop for other perennial plants and garden borders.
Botanical and Common Name: Pyracantha is also called Firethorn.
Plant Category: Firethorn is a perennial evergreen shrub or vine.
Bloom Time and Color: Firethorn flowers late spring to early summer. The white flowers are also fragrant and create a wonderful contrast witht he dark green foliage.
Foliage: The leaves are long, oval shaped and narrow evergreen leaves are dark green with slightly fuzzy grey backs. One of the benefits for gardeners growing pyracantha is the attractive foliage that doesn't lose color.
Growth Habit: Firethorn is a shrub that is easily grown as a vine up a wall or fence to create an evergreen foliage backdrop with a bright berry display in the autumn and winter.
Dimensions: Pyracantha has a spreading growth habit that lends itself to growing up a wall with ease since the vining shrub grows 3-20' tall and wide.
Preferred Conditions: Zones 6-9. Firethorn grows best in well-drained rich soil with full sun to part shade sun conditions.
Maintenance: Pruning is needed to keep Pyracantha growing in the preferred shape and should be pruned lightly in early spring to remove any winter damaged branches and maintain shape.
Pests or Diseases: Firethorn is prone to scab or fireblight. Planting pyracantha near apple trees may encourage the spread of scab disease between the two plants.
Propagation Methods: Firethorn is most often purchased as started plants but can be grown from early summer cuttings of the soft, new growing stem tips.
Companion Plants: Pyracantha makes an excellent companion plant for many plants as it provides four season interest with the evergreen foliage. Try growing summer blooming plants to take advantage of the dark green foliage or colorful autumn plants to contrast with the bright berries.
Seasons of Interest: Pyracantha provides winter interest with evergreen foliage but also gives gardeners early summer fragrant flowers and late autumn/winter berries.
Uses in the Garden: Pyracantha is an excellent vertical accent plant for many garden areas. Firethorn is also used in wildlife gardens because the winter berries provide a great food source for many songbirds.
Other Uses: Firethorn branches and berry clusters are often used in cut flower arrangements and winter floral arrangements.
Varieties and Cultivars: There are several firethorn forms available from dwarf, container ready cultivars, to larger specimens perfect for training along a wall or fence.
- Pyracantha 'Navajo' – This firethorn selection has orange red, vibrant berries.
- Pyracantha 'Waterei' – A nearly thornless firethorn form that has bright crimson berries.
- Pyracantha coccinea – Grown as a shrub this firethorn will grow 8-10' in size but will spread further when trained along a wall or fence.
- Pyracantha 'Golden Charmer' – A stunning firethorn with bright yellow berries.
- Pyracantha 'Mohave' – Mohave is a very popular firethorn, more disease resistant than older varieties, with orange-red berries.
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