Quince (Cydonia oblonga)

One of the first fruit trees we planted on the “tennis court” part of the garden was a quince. It has grown well and the flowers it produces are stunning, as buds they can spiral in either direction and there is a beautiful gradient of colour along the petals from almost white through to deep pink. Once open, the flowers are larger than most apple blossom and they attract bees, hover flies and other beneficial insects.

The fruit, when it comes, is a hard, knobbly pear shape with a lovely golden fuzz. They can get quite large and heavy but are strongly attached to the branches. We have had to provide some support for branches in the past fearing that the weight might break branches off. 2013 has been a fantastic year for quince.

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