Most of a plant's energy reserves is stored in the form of starch in root pith, but no matter how you slice it, some of the roots are going to come off at some point if your plan is to root prune. I think there is an advantage in repotting after leaves drop ion fall as opposed to doing it in early spring - because the roots can still do a LOT of growing after leaves drop. Fortunately, the energy required to open leaf and flower buds in spring is already present in the form of starch reserves at the base of each bud. You can see evidence of this fact when you cut apple, cherry, pussy willow twigs in the middle of winter and 'force' them to bloom and leaf out in a vase of water. Al

Thanks Martin - I have seen your large yields in pics in the past so it seems root pruning in February will not effect fruit yields as long as other parameters are ideal. Perhaps my lower yields were due to inadequate fertilizer or too high soil temps in the pots, I measured one day this summer and the temp in the first 6 or so inches was ~ 100 in July with pots sitting on the driveway in sun all day. I will plan on relocating the pots or shading them next season to see if that helps! Thanks for your input! Have a great remainder of the weekend! Brian

linaria_gw, Kevin Reilly is right! Ourfig forum is a huge source of information plus you can find lots of members that live in similar zone in Europe. I remember coming across European fig forum. My sister is growing fig trees (bush) Brown Turkey, Negronne in ground for 7 years in zone 6 in Slovakia The figs freezed to ground first 3 years but since then even new (last season) shoots survive even some breba crop ripens and after that main crop ripens. She usually cuts off shoots that gets taller then 1 1/2 meters and keeps the shoots apart about 15 cm, she also rubbes unwanted tiny shoot off, that way more sun can penetrate the middle if the Bush. Make sure you plant your fig tree on southwest side of your house, if that is lot possible then at last shelter it to protect it from north cold winds. You will need to winter protect the tree for first 3 years. Best of luck all the way 🌱

I suppose it depends upon how many figs you want. I doubt that many figs will be produced this year since from the pic above it looks pretty much pruned down to dwarf size. I have 2 figs trees and both are about 12' tall which gives us plenty of fruit to make fig jam and for fresh eating. Annually I'll prune out the inner most branches down to ground level to allow more sunlight in and for better air circulation. But I do have the space for them and the branches are flexible enough to bend over for easier picking from the top. If your goal is for a compact ornamental look and enough fruit produced for snacks then your pruning method should fill that bill.