Chaenomeles sp.

flowering quince

Chaenomeles are much beloved for bonsai because of their tiny, lovely flowers, and in spite of their prickly thorns. Most varieties flower before leafing out, sometimes as early as January, and may continue to flower for a long time following. The fruit is yellow and large, too hard to be edible, but making tolerable preserves.

Taxonimists have suffered much over Chaenomeles. To begin, the species now known as C. japonica and C.speciosa were hopelessly confused when introduced into England. They were originally classified as pears, but then reclassified as quinces, and then classified as pears again! Finally, when the genus Pyrus got too large, they were given their own genus. Then the Chinese quince, Chaenomeles sinensis, was reclassified as Pseudocydonia sinensis - false-quince. To make things worse, C. japonica and C. speciosa hybridize at the drop of a hat (called C. x superba), which has made it difficult to know the true derivation of some cultivars (many are simply identified as C. 'CultivarName'.)

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Lighting:

 Full sun, although partial shade in midsummer is desirable in very hot areas.

Temperature:

 Protect from frost.

Watering:

 Generous, but avoid misting as this damages the flowers and may rot the fruit. Reduce watering in winter, but never allow the soil to become fully dry.

Feeding:

 Every two weeks from the end of flowering until fall. Some varieties have spot blooms throughout the season; these obviously still need to be fed when growing actively. Use liquid bonsai fertilizer or half-strength plant food. Proper feeding is essential for good flowering. Calcium in the soil helps to form fruit and flowers.

Repotting:

 Chaenomeles is one of the few species which prefers to be repotted in autumn, but can also be transplanted in early spring, or even summer if the top is properly cut back. The books recommend repotting every 2-4 years, But Brent has found that (at least in the California sun!) they may need yearly repotting. Use rich but well-drained soil. Roots can be cut back by about half if necessary.

Styling:

 Fruiting and flowering can sap the plant's energy dramatically, so it is wise to limit the amount by picking off developing fruit and flower buds, especially in young bonsai. Flowering quince likes to sucker from the roots. Suckers should be removed if a thich trunk is desired; however, thick trunks can be difficult to achieve, especially in some popular C. japonica cultivars such as 'Chojubai.' These plants are most often grown in clump style. Some species may need to be cut back hard to encourage branch formation. New shoots should be cut back to 1-2 leaves after 5-7 leaves have formed, which may be as often as every two weeks in a vigorous plant. Chaenomeles can be wired from spring through the end of summer, leaving the wire on for up to four months, and can be repeated yearly.

Propagation:

 From seeds, which need to be cold-treated before sowing in spring, but will germinate rapidly. Softwood cuttings may be taken in summer,or hardwood cuttings in winter, but cuttings will root slowly. Clumps may be propigated through division. Named hybrids are often propigated through grafting.

Pests etc.:

 Aphids, mites, brown rot, crown gall, fireblight, mildew. Quince is also vulnerable to nematodes, which can be eliminated by application of chopped sesame plant.

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Some species suitable for bonsai:


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Related posts on Quince:

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Clay Gratz
Geezermn35@aol.com
November 10, 1997
I have a fairly large bonsai quince. It come in a huge Bonsai pot. It also is very ungainly in appearence. Upon unpotting it last fall, I found a very large solid root mass directly below the trunk. I would like to pose 2 questions if I may.
First, can quinces be airlayered? There are quite a few potientials on my plant.
Secondly, Can the aforementioned root mass be carved away? It is much too large to fit a pot that would be appropiate for the main trunk that I want to save.
I would very much appreciate any advice or comments on my situation. I plan to unpot it soon now to see how the roots have improved and to explore the possibility of this root mass being exposed above the soil line.
Thanks, Clay


Clay Gratz
Geezermn35@aol.com
November 10, 1997
I have a fairly large bonsai quince. It come in a huge Bonsai pot. It also is very ungainly in appearence. Upon unpotting it last fall, I found a very large solid root mass directly below the trunk. I would like to pose 2 questions if I may.
First, can quinces be airlayered? There are quite a few potientials on my plant.
Secondly, Can the aforementioned root mass be carved away? It is much too large to fit a pot that would be appropiate for the main trunk that I want to save.
I would very much appreciate any advice or comments on my situation. I plan to unpot it soon now to see how the roots have improved and to explore the possibility of this root mass being exposed above the soil line.
Thanks, Clay


Geoline Havener
havener@NETTEN.NET
November 11, 1996
PESTS:
In addition to the pests Brent mentioned, Malus sylvestris (as well as the
Ginkos, Hawthorns, Quinces and probably other Malus species) seem to have a
severe *allergy* to junipers.  Being that junipers are a rather popular
bonsai specimen comes this reminder: JUNIPERS AND APPLES DO NOT MIX!
Silly me, in the middle of trying to shelter some Ginkos and a meticulously
raft coiled crab apple from a severe storm this past summer, I tucked them
under a large garden juniper.  Any leaf or branch which came in contact
with the juniper, shriveled-up and died within a couple of days.   I
mentally kicked and cursed my ownself for that careless act.  I should know
better, but I do forget when rushed.  I am lucky that I noticed the
infections right away and was able to save the Ginkos and the dragon crab.
Only one end coil of the dragon crab died, and I was able to start a new
coil to replace the one that died.




Date: Thu, 4 Apr 1996 07:28:17 -0800
From: Brent Walston 

[Question by Heather snipped]

Chaenomeles ssp are cold hardy to -40 degrees. They make wonderful 
bonsai, but are very slow to develop thick trunks, mainly due to 
their propensity to sucker profusely. They have been cultivated by 
the Chinese for thousands of years and there are very many cultivars. 
Chaenomeles is one of the specialties at our nursery, we grow some 
twenty odd cultivars, most from asia, colors from white to dark red. 
Some are double flowered. I avoid the taxonomic argument of whether the 
cultivars are either C. speciosa or japonica, since I believe most of 
them are hybrids anyway. There are also some fruiting types of 
Quince (for eating, genus Cydonia) but almost all the flowering 
types form an apple like fruit. The scent of the ripening fruit is
devine, one of my very favorite smells, you can smell it when you 
walk by the plant, it is so intense. Like pears this ripening 
doesn't come until late, after frost has begun and the fruit begins 
to soften. These fruit, usually a single one, on a bonsai is a real treat.

[Snip]

These are outdoor plants and require a period of dormancy to set 
flowers and fruit. Pests are mites and aphids. Control with systemic 
insecticides. Mildew can be a problem if you don't give them enough 
light.

Prune them hard right after they flower in the spring and they will 
usually reflower in the fall, mine do. They are quite vigorous even 
though they don't form large trunks, some cultivars will grow to 10 
feet and will produce 5 feet whips in a single season. This is not a 
problem for bonsai, but they must be repotted every year, they will 
actually lift themselves out of the pot if you don't. They are very 
easy to grow, and you will have to work hard to kill them.

I have not heard the story of the 50 year old plants turning red, but 
I bet the reference is to C. 'Toyo Nishiki' that produces white, pink, 
and red flowers all on the same plant. The pattern varies from year to 
year, most years the red flower do not form. This year mine were 
spectacular with loads of red flowers, last year none. Younger plants 
even those produced from cuttings of older wood tend to produce only 
pink and white flowers for a few years. Some years the petals are 
actually striped pink and white and sometimes red, this happened 
two years ago. 'Toyo Nishiki' is a very vigorous cultivar with 
thorns and large leaves and thicker stems, suitable for larger bonsai.

The cultivar with the darkest red flowers (almost like dark red velvet) 
is 'Kurokoji', one of the best for bonsai is 'Hime' with small bright 
pure red flowers with prominent yellow anthers. The most spectacular 
flowers are produced by 'Iwai Nishiki' which has fully double camellia 
type flowers of almost pure red. The individual flowers are about 2 
inches and it produces them in clusters. An incredible show, it is 
small and refined and tends to be prostrate. There are red, pink 
and white contorted forms, all have been used for bonsai.

Brent
Evergreen Gardenworks

=================================================================

Date: Thu, 4 Apr 1996 21:30:18 -0800
From: Brent Walston 

>My quince--with white blooms--flowered in winter when it was leafless
>and is flowering again now (profusely) after our frigid spring.
>However, I have _never_ had a fruit even begin to form.  Is there
>something I need to do in order to experience this divine scent?
>
>--
>Jim Lewis - jkl2@freenet.scri.fsu.edu
>            Cool the Earth . . .
>            Plant a Tree!
>
Jim

Most but not all the cultivars will form fruit, you didn't mention 
which one you have, but my fully double 'O Yashima' forms enormous 
fruit. Pollination this early in Spring may be a problem with no 
insects about. With bonsai one could easily hand pollinate. Calcium 
in the soil mix and fertilizer also helps fruit formation.

Brent
Evergreen Gardenworks

PS: A sure fire  cultivar for fruit and flowers is 'Orange Delight'. 
Orange flowers, low growing, foliage is a little pale.

=================================================================


Date: Thu, 4 Apr 1996 08:39:09 -0600
From: Keith Sedgwick 

[Poor Heather's question snipped again!]

I don't know where you live but in Northern Utah they are used for
foundation plantings.  I don't know what the temperature range for zone
6 is, but our winters can get as cold as -30F or more for a few days.
Our average winter temperature is in a range from  -10F to 5F.  They
seem to do OK.

[snipsnipsnip]

I have a 10 year old Japanese Quince in a cascade.  The variety is 
called "Cameo" and the flowers are peach in color.  I can't say for 
sure about the blossoms turning red on old specimems, but I doubt it.  
If I still have this cascade in 50 years I'll write you and let you know.  :-)

They are quite fast growing and send up a lot of suckers.  I would 
think you could start them from a cutting.

Good Luck

Keith
keith@intaud.usu.edu

=================================================================


Date: Thu, 20 Jun 1996 07:49:06 -0700
From: Brent Walston 

[Stuff about CA plant laws snipped]

My guess is that you have a flowering quince, Chaenomeles speciosa 
'Toyo Nishiki' since it is the most common one to have pink, white, 
and red flowers all on the same plant. It likes full sun and well 
drained conditions, grows very rapidly and is somewhat coarse with 
large leaves and wicked thorns. It requires regular feeding to keep 
good foliage color and abundant flowers. It flowers in spring before 
the foliage appears, and will flower again in the fall if pruned heavily 
in spring.

For bonsai culture it is important to remove the abundant suckers that
dissipate its energy and prevent it from attaining a decent trunk. 
Even with this procedure it takes a very long time to form a good 
trunk, usually a decade or longer. Root pruning is a snap and can 
be done at any time if the proper precautions are followed, such 
as removing some top growth when summer pruning. During the growing 
season it will have to be pinched about every other week.

It will not form red flowers every spring and this is a subject of 
great debate, that is, what is the trigger for the red flowers. It 
will form pink and white flowers routinely. This year my large stock 
plant 'Toyo Nishiki' was spectacular with loads of red flowers in the 
same clusters with the white and pink ones. Personally I think nutrition 
is the primary factor. All the necessary minors must be in place as well 
as a good balance of calcium and magnesium.

Brent
Evergreen Gardenworks
bonsai@pacific.net

=================================================================

Date: Tue, 9 Jul 1996 08:27:35 -0400
From: Michael Persiano 

Quince can also acquire nematodes.  Chopped Sesame Plant is the solution.

Cordially,

Michael Persiano

=================================================================

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Information Sources:

Information on Chaenomeles is taken from Jahn (ed.) "The Simon and Schuster Guide to Bonsai," Murata's "Four Seasons of Bonsai," Owen's "Bonsai Identifier," Resnick's "Bonsai," the Samsons' "Creative Art of Bonsai," and Tomlinson's "Complete Book of Bonsai," supplemented by posts from Brent Walston and Keith Sedgwick, with species information from Coats' "Garden Shrubs and Their Histories," and Thomas (ed.) "The Hearst Garden Guide to Trees and Shrubs." 4


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