Quince?

[goodlife]

This makes interesting reading.
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/ncnu02/v5-385.html

..YES!!!...that was part of the 'report' I was reading!..I'll see if I can dig the whole 'story' that was based on your link.

[goodlife]

[goodlife]

Sorry Jayb....your thread has been totally hijacked by japanese quince now.

I'm still on a look out for 'that' report...but while I've been searching..I found these..
http://pub.epsilon.slu.se/5191/1/6Breeding.pdf
http://pub.epsilon.slu.se/5201/1/14Processing.pdf
http://pub.epsilon.slu.se/5200/1/13Ripening.pdf
http://pub.epsilon.slu.se/5182/1/4Flowering.pdf
...this 'epsilon' source seem to have quite few different studies bublished about Chaeonomeles.

OH..and look at all the different kind of fruits on this family.. http://www.mezhenskyjv.narod.ru/eng_page_3.htm

[goodlife]

Goodlife,
Is it possible to have more details about Estonian attempts to improve chaenomeles for fruit production.Do you remember where you found that information?

I haven't found 'the' report yet, but I'm on trail of it now...http://www.mezhenskyjv.narod.ru/article_scientific/dobele_1996.pdf

Gosh there is a lot of stuff on net about Chaenomeles..I didn't realize how studied crop it is.

[markfield rover]

Hi Jayb
In a good year we can have carrier bags full of fruit and the scent ooh !
The tree can grow 5-7 feet a year ,ours is in a tiny space but doesn't mind and the blossom is delightful , still have plenty of quince jelly which is great in stews etc. Mind not every year is good.
We are not a million miles away from so might be okay ,ours is sheltered.

[goodlife]

Hi Jayb
In a good year we can have carrier bags full of fruit and the scent ooh !
The tree can grow 5-7 feet a year ,ours is in a tiny space but doesn't mind and the blossom is delightful , still have plenty of quince jelly which is great in stews etc. Mind not every year is good.
We are not a million miles away from so might be okay ,ours is sheltered.

Is yours 'proper' quince..not Chaenomeles sort? Do you know the variety that you are growing? How big is your tree?
I'm only asking these questiong as my brain has started 'ticking' over the thought of getting one...but I don't know much about 'proper' quinces. Are they selfpollinating? How much space do they require..or what sort of space they can be grown within (minimum)?
I WANT one....!!!!!!!!!!

[markfield rover]

Hi good life
Yes I think it's proper ,the pears are on average twice the size of a conference pear same shape ,we have several fruit trees near but not a quince. It could grow quite big but we really do hack back hard and show no mercy. As time goes on we may fan it but I do like the way it grows with gay abandon ! Bought from the farmers market about seven years ago I will try to remember its name
I think it may well have been mentioned earlier . We only have room for one fruit tree and I think we made the right choice. I love the huge flowers too.

[pumkinlover]

mine is not huge Goodlife, it must be about 8-9 ft and I have not got round to pruning it for the last two years so it is a bit "dense" at the moment, spread wise it is about 6ft at a guess.Taken about 8 years to fruit though, so you need to get one soon!!!

[goodlife]

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Taken about 8 years to fruit though, so you need to get one soon!!!
Well..I'm about to start another mulberry , the first one took me 8 yrs to fruit as well..but since I'm still a VERY young 'bird'..I'm sure there is  no rush as yet....

[taurus]

Are some of the Quince bushes that have fruit not safe to eat?  I have something growing in the boarder by our drive that as lovely fruit, but was told not to use it as it was ornamental.  The fruit on there this year is really big compared with other years.  I will be very cross if I now find out I could have been using the fruit  .  How do I tell the difference ?

[goodlife]

Chaenomeles=Japanese quinces are all sold in this country as 'ornamental' shrubs..but the fruit from all of them are edible once cooked.
You can taste the ripe uncooked fruit why they have to be cooked before eating/using them....they are VERY sour and tart.
Don't bang your head too much......

[aj]

I hope so as I've just made and eaten quince marmalade from some fallen that I got scrumped a week ago. It's flippin lovely. 

And the stuff left in the muslin has gone in with 2 spare peaches for quince and peach wine.

And the seeds have been sown for potential future root stocks.

[Kea]

DT Brown has a patio quince which I'm very tempted by but not sure how well it will do in a pot. Sibley's patio quince I think it's called.

[GrannieAnnie]

... It has flowered and fruited its socks off.   Mine seems to like sunshine and brutal pruning.  Fruit very hard but

I didn't know until this year that the fruits were edible. I'd given a sapling to a friend and she made some jam. I've never pruned ours but have always cut many branches and forced them in late winter for the salmon blooms indoors. Some years there seem to appear a fair number of hard yellow fruits.

  Digeroo, what do you mean by brutal pruning. How far down do you cut yours? I'm thinking I might try for a crop next year instead of bouquets.

[chriscross1966]

WOuld it not be possible to grow some quince seedlings in pots and then use them as graft stocks to go onto an apple or pear that was on a dwarfing stock?... advantages are probably cross pollination  (dunno if quinces help the others but at least youd get several quinces adn that would have to help) and they'll fruit quicker (probably) ... I've been given a few and made some quince adn blackberry jelly.... if I like it (and get good reports form folks I've given some little jars to) then I'd like to grow them and am establishing fruit at the lottie next year.... so they'd need to be dwarfing trees.... I can pot grow a few quinces to try this with I guess...

chrisc

[goodlife]

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WOuld it not be possible to grow some quince seedlings in pots and then use them as graft stocks to go onto an apple or pear that was on a dwarfing stock?...

I've just been reading about quince grafting..and as far as I know..you cannot unite apple and quince but pear& quince will work.
Quince can be crafted into more drawfing quince rootstock too keep the growth smaller, where as pear root stock would make growth bigger. Quince is commonly grafted as a rootstock for pears to keep them more drawfing...so suppose your pear has quince 'stock', yes, you could graft...but you propably would be much 'safer' with results using cutting rather than seedlings..there is always room for 'error' with finished results.

[goodlife]

OH..this quince 'business' is bugging me now... I keep reading and reading and the obsession of owning a quince tree is not leaving me alone 

Oh well...I must surrender then... ...I had sneaky peek on Deacons site and they still have their 10% discount going on.. I WILL make a call today and see what is available..

Don't know where I am going to plant it though.....

[goodlife]

I DID IT !

Meeche's prolific quince is coming to my address sometime soon 
...and lovely lady in Deacon's didn't fail me again..we had good chat about quinces and what they 'require'. What did surprise me was that as comparison to apples...their quinces, what they crafted on, only take about same amount of room than apple on M26 rootstock.. ..they are smaller than I thought!..and Meeche's is slow grower too and don't need much pruning at all!
And...I was given good growing tip!....when I'm planting my quince..if I tip John Innes no3 bag compost to the planting hole, that will give 'everything' what my new tree require in its first year and will give it good start.

[Digeroo]

This thread is getting a bit complicated  with two different plants.

The ornamental ones do like pruning.  My method is simple, I do it when it is in flower, no flowers and it gets cut off!!!

Sorry Taurus I think you have missed a tasty morsel, but we use very few because they are so hard to prepare.

[Jayb]

Hi Jayb
In a good year we can have carrier bags full of fruit and the scent ooh !
The tree can grow 5-7 feet a year ,ours is in a tiny space but doesn't mind and the blossom is delightful , still have plenty of quince jelly which is great in stews etc. Mind not every year is good.
We are not a million miles away from so might be okay ,ours is sheltered.

Good to know, I think I'll have another look at varieties and go from there. I'm hoping it will go with a crab apple so they will give a bit of height and interest.


Chaeonomeles - Although Goodlife came out tops and has sent me a lovely cutting, thank you again  , I'm also going to go for a another Chaeonomeles when funds allow, I've got a spot they will be able to grow into and if they are a bit unruly it won't matter too much, hopefully they will do well. Thanks everyone

[artichoke]

"...we use very few because they are so hard to prepare."

Sorry if I have written this before, but if you wash them and bake them very slowly, covered, with some water for a few hours, they go soft and pink and the skin rubs off like paper. The juice is delicious too, with a little sugar. At that point they are very easy to slice and core and add to things, or freeze. I agree they are tiring to chop and peel when raw.

http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/journal/2006/12/8/quinces-the-lazy-way.html

"This brilliant recipe (if it can even be called that) consists of washing a number of quinces, placing them in a baking dish with some water and sugar, covering it tightly with foil, and then going and relaxing in front of the television for approximately three hours...................... you will not only have the most luscious softly-yielding braised quinces to eat in any way you like, but also a fragrant ruby syrup Skye terms 'quince cordial', which when topped with a splash of prosecco or champagne, will easily be the hit of your next party."

An exact recipe follows without all the chat.