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Quince pruning
Julie Lanteri
Posts: 133
in Fruit & veg
My quince is a dwarf leskovac (serbian gold). I pruned it last winter, removing inward, crossing branches and looking at the crazy growth i probably cut back the leaders.
Can i cut back those shoots now to reduce the height? If so how much?
thank you
0
Posts
Don't forget that there are two different plants called Quince. Cydonia oblonga which is the true Quince and is a tree and Chaenomeles japonica which is more of a shrub. So the pruning regime is different. We cut back the shrubby one whenever it outgrows its allotted space when it needs doing. Still fruits well. The tree form is definitely treated like an Apple or Pear fro pruning.
And why throw the fruit away? We make a delightful preserve from it. Marmalade was originally made from Quince not oranges.
@Doghouse riley
The only difference between the 'edible' fruit of the true Quince and the 'unsuitable' fruit of the Chaenomeles is the way the seed is packaged inside the fruit. The taste is just the same.
I believe there are several kinds of edible, "proper" quince. My grandfather had two, one only for cooking and the other, juicy, sweet and highly aromatic, to eat raw. I adore quince, from its beautiful blossom to its priceless fruit.
Moreover, its equally aromatic leaves, when dried, make lovely, refreshing tea; wonderful when taken with toast and honey! (Or whatever you may prefer, of course.)
The fruits from both trees were used to make the most wonderful preserve, nothing like it in my opinion; and they were also cooked with pork. Amazing!
You treat Quince, the fruit variety Cydonia oblonga the same as pear trees. If you look to the RHS for pruning pears it's the same for Quince.
Thank you all. I'll have a look at pear pruning before giving it a chop.
That is Japanese quince. I have one too, and once made a sort of jam by boiling it down with sugar. It needs a lot of sugar. The resut is sharp and lemony, I imagine it'd be lovely dribbled on a baked cheese cake. You can also put a few pieces into an apple pie, it adds a lovely flavour.
Cydonia oblonga has sweet and sour varieties. Mine is a sweet one, called Isfahan, but thus far I have had not one fruit, and it is in year 5. Sour ones cannot be eaten raw, they need to be cooked with lots of sugar.
Hi Danae, I do agree quince is a very special fruit; and it's also sacred to Aphrodite, no less!
During our last holiday in Crete, we had the most wonderful pork with quince and dried plums (soft prunes). It was a small, friendly restaurant and we were even asked if we'd like apricots added too. We declined the offer but next time we'll try it.