Good to go, repot soon before the foliage emerges. Afterward protect from frost and give it lots of sun.
Aaron
Late frosts are awful, we always have them here. I've lost a few trees in the same manner, I like to stick my BC in my tropical greenhouse after repotting, no chance of frost and the heat and humidity really get it jump started on the season.Thanks very much Aaron. I lost a tree last year when the same thing happened and we were hit by a late March frost. I'll definitely be more vigilant this year.
I'm having a difficult time judging the most ideal time to repot.
That's another two and a half months for me, all my trees would be fully leafed out by then! I repot when buds swell and protect from frost from there on.With BC as tough as they are wouldn't it be better to wait till after any frost hazard?
In my 20 years of repotting trees, I have never been able to repot- excluding conifers- after the risk of frost is gone. Back when there were real winters and I lived in MA, my maples would start swelling in late March or early April... the last frost date was early to mid May. Here in N GA, I've had maples breaking dormancy in mid January this year, though they usually will get started by late February... last frost date around here is early to mid April. My point is that it's a pipe dream thinking you won't have to protect your trees at some point during the spring unless you grow only extremely cold hardy junipers and pines. The take away here is to site your trees appropriately during the winter (consistently cold/preferably frozen and out of the sun) so they stay dormant as long as possible... and when they begin to break dormancy, repot as needed and protect from freezing weather as needed.
My BC began emerging from dormancy very early this year, around last week or so. Should I wait until the buds swell a little more or should I be good to repot this weekend? I'm having a difficult time judging the most ideal time to repot.
Way to early in your area for this to be budding at all. With rough weather coming put it in an unheated shed, garage, or entry way out of sun until the frosts pass. Discuss when to repot after all danger of frost is gone - serious, don't mess with it now.
Grimmy
What's the lowest temperature that it can now safely tolerate?