Quince Tree

[Cassandra]

I have a mature quince tree. In the 2006 season, it had so many quince on it that one of the limbs broke. Bucketsfull, seriously!

Last year (2007 season) it had 5. FIVE! I had someone climb up in the tree to pick them all. I hated to waste even one.

This year, there are a few (3 or 4?) through out the tree. Then this one branch on the east side has probably 20 fruits on it! They are too high up for me to thin, anyway. (Not that I am inclined to thin them.)

Why is it doing that?! Quince is not a popular fruit, but it is related to the pear if that is any help. What makes fruit trees bare so erratically.

Cassandra
The fruits are golfball sized already! I'm so excited! (squeal!!!!)

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

Years ago we had a similar problem. We had a quince that had very low hanging branches that were giving great then just stopped flowering or bearing fruit. The following year we pruned it down almost to the point of being excessive and it came back and gave tons of fruit. It was my grandfathers recommendation to prune the tree.

I'm not sure that this is a good solution but it's a solution that we used. I would check to see if there are any problems with insects or other pests on the non fruit bearing branches. Also, does it flower all over then not fruit or does it not flower at all? We've had issues that when the quince got too dry it dropped it's flower and very little fruit set. I would assume that, as with most fruit trees, consistent watering especially during the fruit setting season is important.

 

[patandchickens]

I do not know about quinces, but some apple varieties characteristically bear prolifically every 2nd (or more rarely, 3rd) year, and poorly in the 'off' years. Even varieties that do not characteristically do this can be pushed into the pattern temporarily if for some reason they have one really bumper-crop year. Presumably it relates to the trees resources being depleted?

Some nut bearing trees do this too, often just every 5 years or something like that, called "mast" years. It is suggested that this is evolutionarily advantageous to oversaturate the nut-predator population so that *some* nuts go uneaten.

Perhaps though your quince just needs time to recover from what it considers a severe pruning. I wouldn't worry - it's probably just a temporary annoyance.

Pat

 

[bills]

I have a quince tree as well, and although it is quite large, it doesn't produce huge amounts of fruit. 20-30 average.

Some years I believe that the pollination is affected because of the weather. The wet spring years keep the bees away. I really notice this with my cherry tree, as it blossoms early, when the weather is often still pretty bad. The hot dry spring years, cherry production is huge.

I suppose a person should really keep a year to year log book, showing weather at time of blossom, , and fruit production, and perhaps pruning schedule. Might prove to be quite enlightening. I know I do have a book for the veggie garden, listing planting dates, types, and species planted, where stuff was planted, and approximate. amounts produced. Perhaps I should start one for my fruit trees.

If you haven't tried it, quince syrup is fantastic on pancakes, or ice creme. Simple to make, and very tasty. Makes for a nice gift as well, if canned in those little decorative jars.

 

[Cassandra]

Years ago we had a similar problem. We had a quince that had very low hanging branches that were giving great then just stopped flowering or bearing fruit. The following year we pruned it down almost to the point of being excessive and it came back and gave tons of fruit. It was my grandfathers recommendation to prune the tree.
.

OCF, you know, it's funny that you mention that. My boss has a couple of quince trees. He said he got three of them (because someone told him they needed to cross polinate.) He bought them as young trees. One of them didn't make it. But as they got bigger and failed to produce, someone told him you have to prune them really heavily--almost butcher them back to nothing--for them to start making fruit. Following that advice, he said he hacked it all up. And the next year it started producing really well.

Cassandra

 

[Cassandra]

Perhaps though your quince just needs time to recover from what it considers a severe pruning. I wouldn't worry - it's probably just a temporary annoyance.

Pat

It really was, Pat! The branch was as big around as my (ample) arm and just sagged down to the ground until it broke!

I still haven't forgiven myself that I wasn't able to harvest them and do anything with them. I had just bought the house in October of that year. And it was Thanksgiving week when we moved in. With moving and the holidays and everything, by the time I was able to start collecting them over the next few weeks, they were getting bad.

(sigh) I will be telling my grandchildren that sad story.



Cassandra

 

[Cassandra]

If you haven't tried it, quince syrup is fantastic on pancakes, or ice creme. Simple to make, and very tasty. Makes for a nice gift as well, if canned in those little decorative jars.

Whenever I am looking up quince I always read that they are inedible when raw. Well, I have considerable evidence to the contrary. LOL

I have never made anything with quince, we always eat them raw. I plan on making some jelly at least, if I can ever collect enough of them at the same time.

Cassandra

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Hey Cassandra!

If memory serves, the year that your quince was boutiful was the same year that apple trees in Washington state had a bumper crop as well. I think it had to do with weather conditions here . . . maybe the same was true your way?

I also have sampled the supposedly "inedible" japanese quince (after reading that it was more of a non-palatable fruit than an inedible fruit). Wow! Those are quite tart! But I've been known to eat things of that nature. I made quince pectin with those japanese quinces and found out that you don't need to add very much to make jam set. I hope to try it again some day, but since we moved I only have a new little baby quince plant.