Quince Trees

Quince trees make a great addition to a garden or orchard. They are grown not just for their uniquely tasting pear like fruits but also for the beauty of their solitary pink flowers in late spring making them ornamental as well as productive.

Unsurprisingly related to pears, Quince Trees like similar growing conditions – a site that has at least reasonable drainage, a good rich soil (ideally a generous amount of organic matter such as garden compost or well-rotted farmyard manure should be added when planting) and a nice sunny and sheltered site. Quinces originate from the mountain slopes of Iran where it can get very cold, these trees are very hardy but to maximise their fruiting potential it is important to choose a sunny sheltered site that will give the best chances of successful pollination in Spring.

Quince trees need very little maintenance, fruits are borne on the tips of the branches and so regular pruning is not required, just an occasional tidy up if the tree becomes congested. Quince trees lend themselves to being open shaped trees to let the light penetrate and ripen the fruits.

Quince trees are self fertile and so a second tree or quince variety is not required for pollination and successful cropping.

All our Quinces are grafted onto a Quince A semi dwarfing rootstock and will grow into a tree of 3-4 metres high over ten years making them suitable for most gardens.

We recommend adding Rootgrow when planting a new Quince tree to give it a head start, its also important to keep the immediate area around your young tree free of weeds and grass for the first few years. Ideally a 0.5-1 metre circle to which a generous layer of bark chippings or similar mulch could be added to retain moisture and maximise growth in the first few years. A new Quince tree should start to bear fruit within 3-5 years from planting.