Quince tree

vallack38

My quince has lovely blossom but never any fruit.   I don't mind as love the blossom but it has put on about 4feet of growth straight up this year and a friend suggested I just leave it to grow on as a column-like tree.   Does anyone have any idea if this would work or indeed if it is a good idea for the tree, which is about 7 years old.

bertrand-mabel

We have 2 quince trees. The original one started having problems with leaves browning and falling early in the season and whilst it had flowered well the fruit didn't develop. So this was cut back to the trunk. The next year it leafed up very well with no problems with the leaves. However no flowers. The 2nd year same issue but this year it did flower well but only 6 fruits. We did have a cold spell when it was flowering. This tree is more upright but with side branches.

The other quince is about 4 years old and has flowered and fruited since it was planted. It fruits so well we have to take out many of them or the tree branches would break. This tree looks more like a shrub and has many branches that hang down more than being upright.

I agree that the flowers on the quince are lovely and I hope that you manage to get fruit next year as the scent from the mature fruits is lovely. How about pollinating some of the flowers yourself using a cotton bud or small paint brush?

vallack38

Thank you.  I will try that pollinating - hadn't thought of doing that.

Bijdezee

Which quince is it? Ay previous garden we had a red one, japonica and it flowered really well with lots of small fruits.

Since moving I bought a speciosa variety 'nivalis' and am growing it in a large terracotta pot. It's doing very well and flowers wonderfully but no fruits 🙁. I've tried hand pollination, checked water and feed etc but still no fruits. I'm hoping this spring will be the year. The buds are already forming. 

Nollie

Are they the large, yellow edible quinces, Cydonia oblonga, or the ornamental Japanese type?

My Cydonia oblonga ‘Vranja’ produced small fruit in year 3 and large fruits in year 4. I also have a couple of the ornamental Japanese quince, the red one produces fruit, the white one doesn’t.

bertrand-mabel

Nivalis doesn't produce the fruit as does Cydonia. So maybe @vallack38 you have a Japanese quince.

Bijdezee

I'm a bit confused @bertrand-mabel. Do you mean that Nivalis does not fruit at all? Same for Japanese quince? I may have misunderstood but my jap. Quince did have fruit, not full size ofc but it definitely fruited.

Edit: just seen this :
The Chaenomeles speciosa nivalis or Japanese quince Nivalis is a small thorny shrub native to Asia, it seduces with its early flowering of a beautiful pure white and its hardiness. Variety of Japanese quince with spreading habit, it reaches a height of 1.50 to 2 m in adulthood for a spread of 1 to 2 m. Undemanding, it adapts to any type of soil and withstands cold temperatures down to -25 ° C.

From March to April, the bare branches are covered with a multitude of small simple but very decorative white flowers, gathered in bouquets. The leaves then appear. In autumn, the flowers give way to very odorous globose fruits resembling apples and pears, first green then yellow. The fruits of Chaenomeles speciosa nivalis are only eaten cooked, they are used to make jams, jellies or fruit pastes and to make liqueurs. We extract a very fragrant perfume,

So yes, i can expect fruit from Nivalis, back to hoping. 

Edit again: now I understand, it does not have full size fruit like an a tal quince tree. 

bertrand-mabel

The Japanese quince is usually used as an ornamental shrub and whilst it does produce fruit it is usually very small and most people just leave them on the plant. However the Cydonia produces fruit that is worthwhile harvesting.

We do have also have Nivalis but never bother with the small fruits, still good to have in the garden as lovely flowers in the spring.

steephill

There is one other possibility - Chaenomeles cathyensis, chinese quince. It is similar to japanese quince but bigger - fruit are large apple size. It has a tall, columnar growth habit and is viciously thorny.

vallack38

It is definitely a proper quince, not a Chaenomeles - but any views on whether it should be pruned back to keep as small rounded tree or leave to become tall and free!

strelitzia32

If you don't prune it and reduce congestion, you're running the risk of getting brown rusty fungus stuff (technical term, that is) that blotches the leaves and causes them to drop early. Quince are quite vulnerable to that, I've got a large one that suffers in wet summers. So my all means let it grow, but let it grow in a controlled way if that makes sense?

I agree the blossom is lovely, the fruit is horrible though