Chinese quince

Chinese quince: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Small, loose tree or large shrub, 5–8 m tall and 4–6 m wide, with an open, irregular crown and no thorns.

Foliage

Elliptic, 5–10 cm long, glossy dark green with a finely toothed edge. Autumn colour yellow to orange-red.

Flower

Solitary pink flowers of 3–4 cm in April and May, opening with the young leaves.

Bark

Flakes off in patches, creating a pattern of grey, cream and reddish-brown.

Fruit

Large (10–15 cm), egg-shaped, yellow and waxy, with a strong fruity scent. Hard and astringent: edible only when cooked.

Flowering: April–May · Harvest and fruit: October–November · Plants: March–April and October–December · Pruning: February–March

Why grow it?

• Interest in three seasons: pink blossom in spring, glossy leaves in summer, autumn colour and yellow fruits in the late season.
• The flaking bark, with grey, cream and reddish-brown patches, gives the tree character even in winter.
• The large fruits smell wonderful and can be made into jelly, syrup or compote.
• The April and May flowers provide nectar and pollen for bees and bumblebees.
• Stays small enough for an ordinary garden and is hardy down to about −20 °C.

Chinese quince: where does it grow best?

• Full sun for the richest flowering and the best fruit set; on a warm spot the fruits ripen better.
• Ordinary garden soil: sand, loam or clay, acid to chalky, preferably free-draining with some humus.
• Normally moist: an established tree tolerates a dry spell, but not wet feet.
• Sheltered from cold wind and late frosts, which can catch the flowers in April.
• Allow 5–6 m of free space around a mature tree.

Light

Sun

Soil type

Sand, loam or clay

Acidity

Not fussy

Moisture

Normal

Size

8 m tall, 6 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -20 °C)

Goes well with

• Daffodils: Flower in March–April, just before the tree, and fill the ground under the crown.
• Hardy geranium: A tough ground cover that keeps the soil under the tree covered.
• Lady’s mantle: Soft yellow flowers and fresh green leaves at the base.
• Ornamental onion: Flowers in May–June, when the quince blossom is over.

Chinese quince: when and how to plant it?

Plant in March–April and October–December.

1. Plant from October to December or in March–April, on a day when the soil is neither frozen nor waterlogged.
2. Dig a hole twice as wide as the rootball and just as deep. Loosen the sides so the roots can spread easily.
3. Mix the excavated soil with a few spadefuls of compost; in heavy clay add some coarse sand for better drainage.
4. Plant the tree at the same depth as it stood in the nursery and add a sturdy stake. Tie the trunk loosely with a tree tie.
5. Water in immediately with a generous amount (10–15 litres) and firm the soil.
6. Spread a layer of compost or bark mulch around the base, keeping it clear of the trunk.

Care

Water

For the first two years, water generously once a week in dry spells. After that the tree usually looks after itself.

Feeding

In March, a spadeful of compost or an organic fruit-tree fertiliser around the tree. Not too much nitrogen: it gives lots of leaves and few fruits.

Mulching

Each spring, a 5 cm layer of compost or bark, kept clear of the trunk. It keeps the soil moist and free of weeds.

Support

Young trees need a stake for the first 2–3 years. Tie up heavily laden branches if needed.

Harvest

Pick the fruits in October when they are yellow, before the first hard frost. Store them in a cool place and use them within a few weeks.

In the kitchen

Peel the fruits, remove the core and simmer them with sugar for jelly, syrup or compote. Raw, they are too hard.

Tip: Put a few yellow fruits in a bowl indoors: they smell wonderfully fruity. Afterwards, cook them into jelly or syrup.

Chinese quince: when to prune it?

Pruning months: February–March.

When: Prune lightly. Do it in February–March on a dry, frost-free day.

How:

• In the first years, build a sturdy, open crown on 3–5 main branches.
• Later, remove only dead, diseased, crossing and inward-growing branches.
• Take out upright water shoots and suckers at the base.
• Use a sharp, clean pair of secateurs or a saw and make clean cuts.

Caution: Prune in dry weather and not in spring or summer: wounds heal poorly then and diseases such as fire blight get more chance.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

Take the seeds from ripe fruits and sow them outside in pots in autumn, or keep them for 2–3 months in damp sand in the fridge and sow them in spring. Seedlings grow slowly, may differ from the parent and bear fruit only after several years.

Grafting

Nurseries graft the tree in late winter onto a related rootstock. This is tricky at home: buy a grafted tree if possible.

Chinese quince: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −20 °C.

• Fully hardy down to about −20 °C: a mature tree needs no protection in Flanders.
• Young trees get a layer of leaves or bark around the base for the first winters.
• A late night frost in April can damage the flowers: cover small trees with horticultural fleece if frost is forecast.

Diseases and pests

• Fire blight: Shoots and flowers suddenly wilt and look scorched, with a hooked shoot tip. Cut affected branches 30–50 cm back into healthy wood, disinfect the secateurs after every cut and remove the prunings from the garden.
• Leaf spot: Small brown spots on the leaves in a wet summer; the leaves drop early. Clear fallen leaves in autumn and keep the crown airy.
• Fruit rot: Fruits rot with brown patches and pale mould pads. Pick off affected fruits and dispose of them; do not leave them hanging in the tree.
• Aphids: On young shoots in May. Rinse them off with water or let ladybirds do the work.
• Late frost: Browned flowers after a cold night in April: fruit set fails. Choose a sheltered spot and cover small trees.

Through the year

• February: Prune on a frost-free day: remove dead and crossing wood.
• March: Plant or move. Give compost or organic fertiliser.
• April: Flowering begins. Cover the flowers of small trees on frosty nights.
• May: Flowering. Apply mulch. Water young trees in dry weather.
• June: Water young trees in dry weather. Watch for aphids.
• July: Water during prolonged drought.
• August: Fruits swell. Watch for fire blight and leaf spot.
• September: Fruits turn yellow. Remove affected fruits.
• October: Harvest before the first hard frost. Plant. Autumn colour.
• November: Plant. Clear fallen leaves. Mulch young trees.
• December: Plant in frost-free weather. Dormant.

Edible and useful

Fruit (October–November)

The large, oval, golden-yellow fruits (up to 15 cm and more than half a kilo) ripen in October and November and then smell wonderfully of flowers and citrus. Pick them before hard frost. Raw, they are rock-hard and astringent: always cook them. Full of pectin, they make a beautiful amber jelly; in Asia they are preserved in honey or made into a syrup for sore throats.

Storing

Undamaged fruits keep for a few weeks somewhere cool and scent the whole room. Do not store them with other fruit: they make it ripen faster and pass on their scent.

Caution: Do not eat the fruit raw: it is hard, sour and astringent. The pips contain amygdalin: do not crack them and remove them, except for jelly, where they are discarded after straining. The flesh is so hard that you need a sturdy knife and a solid board: cut carefully.

Eating and using is at your own risk: see the terms of use.

Recipes

• Chinese quince jelly (Jelly · ± 4 jars · 1 hr 30 + overnight straining)
• Chinese quince in honey (Other · ± 2 jars · 30 min + 2 weeks)

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Did you know?

• In Korea the fruit is called mogwa and is made into a tea from sliced, sweetened fruit.
• The Chinese quince is the only member of the genus Pseudocydonia, which means ‘false quince’. It used to be placed with the flowering quinces.
• The bark flakes off in patches, like that of a plane tree.