Solved Shrub ID?

Hi, could anyone help ID this for me? It’s been trained along a wall, it has little white (I think) flowers in spring and now little red berries. It also has razor sharp thorns! I think it’s evergreen as well.

 

It look like one of the Pyracanthas - also known as Firethorn for obvious reasons
Very easy to look after and a good source of food for bees and birds

 

Watch out for the thorns every one of them has a pocketful of germs on the tip. One wound and almost immediately it goes septic.

 

Oh yikes, that doesn’t sound great. All the more reason for me to get it under control. Is there a good time of year to cut it back closer to the original framework? I’m never sure about when to cut back evergreens.

 

Don't worry too much about the thorns, although they're sharp and I've had many stabs with them, I've never felt any illeffects am still here

 

I used to hack mine back anytime I thought it needed it.

I've also been stabbed by the vicious thorns, but no different to other vicious thorns.
A bit painful but no problems.
If you do get stabbed, just wash thoroughly and a dab of TCP or similar if you feel inclined

 

True - though I do have small kids running around. It’s an east facing wall, might see if there’s something else I could replace it with.

 

You could have a look at Cotoneaster horizontalis has similar form, red berries and can be trained.
I have a Cotoneaster microphylla growing very flat along a wall.

 

Sounds like the issue is your immune system and not the pyracantha. I've fallen head first into a few, a painful annoyance rather than breaking out in festering puss bubbles.
Now head first into a puya alpestris.....

 

Nothing wrong with my immune system, and Pyracantha had the same effect on both myself and my wife. It could just have been the ones we had in our previous garden, but all three of them did it. Better safe than sorry.

 

Often puncture wounds only go septic if the thorn breaks off in there.

Usually I find they hurt at the time but most heal fairly quickly, mind you I seem to bleed more than I used to.

 

Thanks - I’ll look into that!

 

Correction; it should be microphyllus not microphylla.