Flowering Quince

Chaenomeles speciosa

Flowering quince is grown primarily for its bright flowers, which may be red, pink, orange, or white. The flowers bloom in late winter or early spring. They emerge from bare stems, before any leaves appear. The edible quince fruit is yellowish-green with reddish blush and speckled with small dots. The fruit is 2 to 4 inches in diameter, fragrant, and ripens in fall. The fruit of the flowering quince is also fragrant and is sometimes used for making jelly, marmalade, and preserves, as it contains more pectin than apples and real quinces. The fruit also has more vitamin C than lemons!

It is an easy-to-grow, drought-tolerant shrub that does well in shady spots as well as sun (although more sunlight will produce better flowers). It is adaptable to many soil conditions and will even grow in heavy clay soil, as long as the pH is not too high. It is an extremely tough plant that will persist for years without pruning or serious insect or disease problems.

The foliage of flowering quince turns yellow to red in the fall, providing color to the landscape. By virtue of its thorny dense growth habit, flowering quince is an excellent choice for an effective security barrier or to discourage foot traffic. It can be espaliered and is also suitable for cultivation as bonsai.

Flowering quince is used as a food plant by the larvae of some butterflies, and the flowers attract bees. Because it blooms so early, flowering quince is an important food for hummingbirds and will bring the birds to your yard before you even get your feeders out of storage.

Regular pruning of flowering quince will help to maintain plant size and shape, and to increase flowering. Prune out one-third of the oldest, woodiest stems as close to the ground as possible each year, after flowering in spring. This encourages the plant to generate new stems each year, and avoids the development of older, less vigorous stems that bloom poorly.

Popular cultivars include ‘Texas Scarlet,’ a 3-foot-tall plant with red blooms; ‘Cameo,’ a double, pinkish shrub to five feet tall; and ‘Jet Trail,’ a white shrub to 3 feet tall.