🍐 Quince

Quince is a beautiful small tree with large pink-white blossom in spring, and golden fragrant fruit in autumn. It is undemanding, self-fertile, and cropping reliably in sheltered spots in the south of England.

The fruit is hard and astringent raw, but cooks to a gorgeous rosy red with a perfumed, honeyed flavour. A single tree can yield dozens of fruits, making it great for preserves.

Varieties to try

Vranja (large, aromatic, reliable)Meech’s Prolific (early, heavy)Leskovac (large, good in cooler areas)Serbian Gold (heavy, aromatic)

Plant bare-root trees from November to March in a sunny, sheltered position with moist but well-drained soil. Quince tolerates heavy soils better than most fruit trees, but dislikes drought. Stake and mulch.

Self-fertile, so one tree is enough. It flowers late, avoiding most frosts. Container-grown plants can be planted year-round with watering.

Top tips

• Plant in a sheltered spot.
• Mulch well.
• Water in dry spells.
• One tree is enough.

Little pruning is needed. Remove dead, crossing and diseased branches in winter and keep the centre open. Water young trees in dry weather. Mulch every spring.

Quince leaf blight and fireblight may occur in wet summers; remove affected shoots. Thin heavy crops of fruit in June to improve size.

Top tips

• Light pruning only.
• Thin heavy crops.
• Remove blighted shoots.
• Mulch yearly.

Watch out for

Quince leaf blightFireblightCodling mothBrown rot

Harvest in October when the fruit turns from green to golden yellow and smells fragrant, before frosts. Pick gently with the stalk, since they bruise. Hold fruit for a few weeks to develop aroma.

Rub off the grey down before using.

Quinces ripen gradually; if frost threatens before they colour, harvest regardless and let them ripen indoors, where their perfume will fill the room. Do not store them next to other fruit, as they can taint the flavour of apples and pears.

Top tips

• Pick when golden and fragrant.
• Pick before frost.
• Rub off the down.
• Ripen indoors for fragrance.

Quince is too hard to eat raw. Poach it in sugar syrup for an hour until rose pink, bake in tarts, make quince jelly, membrillo (quince paste, perfect with cheese), or add a slice to apple pie for fragrance.

Store whole fruit in a cool, dark place for 2–3 months. Membrillo keeps for a year. Cooked quince freezes well.

Top tips

• Make membrillo for cheese.
• Poach slowly.
• Add to apple pie.
• Store in a cool place.