Saturday, March 15, 2014

THE RED FLOWERING QUINCE AND (BONUS SURPRISE QUINCE PHOTO BLOG)

Hi Everybody!!
In the early days of Gardening in Houston, the selections were limited at the few places to buy plants. One of the prized shrubs available: The Japanese Quince. Dad and Mom purchased our first home when I was 2 and planted a Quince in the middle of the back fence among some wax leaf ligustrums. The gnarly bush and I grew up together and experienced many firsts! This was the first flower I took apart to see what was inside. The first thorn to prick my finger was on the quince. I first noticed bees on these flowers. I learned to catch bees in a jar around the shrub. (I caught the bumblebees with my hands). I discovered the flowers went away, but were the very first to bloom every new year. This was the first shrub I pruned (to Dad's horror). It did grow back in spite of me! Finally, this was the first wild fruit I tasted and it was yucky. I have shared info below from Wikipedia about the Flowering Quince. Yes, all these years later as an old Granny, I still have a gnarly old Red Flowering Quince. Now I make excellent jelly from the bletted fruit! As a surprise bonus, I also have a Double Peach Flowering Quince who just began his bloom! Enjoy your photostudy of these Flowers and plant one for yourself!

Link to photostudy in G+ Albums:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/117645114459863049265/albums/5990858398667677505

Red Flowering Quince

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaenomeles

Chaenomeles

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Chaenomeles is a genus of three species of deciduous spiny shrubs, usually 1–3 m tall, in the family Rosaceae. They are native to eastern Asia in Japan, China and Korea. These plants are related to the quince (Cydonia oblonga) and the Chinese quince(Pseudocydonia sinensis), differing in the serrated leaves, and in the flowers having deciduous sepals and styles that are connate at the base.

The leaves are alternately arranged, simple, and have a serrated margin. The flowers are 3–4.5 cm diameter, with five petals, and are usually bright orange-red, but can be white or pink; flowering is in late winter or early spring. The fruit is a pome with five carpels; it ripens in late autumn.

Chaenomeles is used as a food plant by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Brown-tail and the leaf-miner Bucculatrix pomifoliella.

Chaenomeles

**Chaenomeles in flower, probably a cultivar of C. × superba**
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Subfamily:	Amygdaloideae^[1]
Tribe:	Maleae
Subtribe:	Malinae
Genus:	Chaenomeles Lindl.
Species
Chaenomeles cathayensis Chaenomeles japonica Chaenomeles speciosa

Common names[edit]

Although all quince species have flowers, gardeners in the West often refer to these species as "flowering quince", since Chaenomeles are grown ornamentally for their flowers, not for their fruits. These plants have also been called "Japanese quince", and the name "japonica" (referring to C. japonica) was widely used for these plants in the 19th and 20th centuries, although this common name is not particularly distinctive, sincejaponica is a specific epithet shared by many other plants. The names "japonica" or "Japanese quince" were (and still are) often loosely applied to Chaenomeles in general, regardless of their species. The most commonly cultivated Chaenomeles referred to as "japonica" are actually the hybrid C. × superba and C. speciosa; C. japonica itself is not as commonly grown.

Species and hybrids[edit]

C. cathayensis is native to western China and has the largest fruit of the genus, pear-shaped, 10–15 cm long and 6–9 cm wide. The flowers are usually white or pink. The leaves are 7–14 cm long.

Chaenomeles japonica

C. japonica (Maule's Quince or Japanese Quince) is native to Japan, and has small fruit,apple-shaped, 3–4 cm diameter. The flowers are usually red, but can be white or pink. The leaves are 3–5 cm long.

C. speciosa (Chinese Flowering Quince; syn.: Chaenomeles laganaria, Cydonia lagenaria, Cydonia speciosa, Pyrus japonica) is native to China and Korea, and has hard green apple-shaped fruit 5–6 cm diameter. The flowers are shades of red, white, or flecked with red and white. The leaves are 4–7 cm long.

Four named hybrids have been bred in gardens. The most common is C. × superba(hybrid C. speciosa × C. japonica), while C. × vilmoriniana is a hybrid C. speciosa × C. cathayensis, and C. × clarkiana is a hybrid C. japonica × C. cathayensis. The hybrid C. × californica is a tri-species hybrid (C. × superba × C. cathayensis). Numerous named cultivars of all of these hybrids are available in the horticultural trade.

Uses[edit]

Chaenomeles sp. bisected fruit, probably C. speciosa or cultivar

The species have become popular ornamental shrubs in parts of Europe and North America, grown in gardens both for their bright flowers and as a spiny barrier. Somecultivars grow up to 2 m tall, but others are much smaller and creeping.

They are also suitable for cultivation as a bonsai.^[2]

The fruits are very hard and astringent and very unpleasant to eat raw, though they do soften and become less astringent after frost (when they are said to be "bletted"). They are, however, suitable for making liqueurs, as well as marmalade and preserves, as they contain more pectin than apples and true quinces. The fruit also contains more vitamin Cthan lemons (up to 150 mg/100 g).