Peter,
Two questions:
A) When is the best time to repot a brugmanzia? Mine have been in 14 square pots (11″ deep) pots for about 8-9 years.
B) Most of my brugs (I have 10 of them) grow to about 6-7 feet tall. The wind tips them over. What suggestions do you have for keeping them upright? In past years I’ve used 3 tall stakes with thick rubber coated wire ties for each brugs. The wind still knocks them over occasionally and the branches and flowers get mangled. I also tried cement blocks on all 4 sides against each pot but that did not help. Neither the stakes nor the cement blocks look great in my yard. This year I was thinking of digging a hole, setting the same size pot in the hole, then putting the pot with the brugs into the pot in the ground. The pots the brugs are in have always sat in large saucers. I keep the saucers filled with water. Those brugs take a lot of fertilized water. I’m afraid if I set the pot with the brugs in the ground, I don’t know how to keep the brugs hydrated and nourished. The fertilized water will leach out into the surrounding ground and help the lawn and weeds grow. I was also thinking of building tall square wooden boxes to accommodate the saucers and the pots, then attach 2×4’s at a 45 degree angle to the ground; kind of like guy ropes between the top of a tent and the ground. That’ll take a lot of wood though. Any thoughts?
Repot right away…now is the time. You idea of sinking the pots about halfway into the soil sounds like the best bet. They will actually be easier to keep them hydrated because the pots will be a bit cooler. Feed them just as you always have.