Cydonia oblonga Mill.

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Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Cydonia oblonga' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/cydonia/cydonia-oblonga/). Accessed 2025-04-19.

Family

Rosaceae

Genus

Cydonia

Common Names

Common Quince

Synonyms

Pyrus cydonia L.
Cydonia vulgaris Pers.

Infraspecifics

Other taxa in genus

Glossary

glandular: Bearing glands.
ovate: Egg-shaped; broadest towards the stem.

References

There are no active references in this article.

Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Cydonia oblonga' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/cydonia/cydonia-oblonga/). Accessed 2025-04-19.

Quince Cydonia oblonga blossom. Image John Grimshaw.

A deciduous, thornless tree, 15 to 20 ft high, with crowded branches and a low quaint habit; young branchlets covered with greyish wool. Leaves ovate or elliptical, 21⁄2 to 4 in. long, 13⁄4 to 21⁄4 in. wide, not toothed, dark green above, pale with a dense felt of grey wool beneath, especially when young; stipules hairy, glandular. Flowers 2 in. across, pink or white, each one solitary at the end of a short twig, produced during May. Fruit light golden yellow, pear-shaped, very fragrant.

The native country of the quince, like that of some other commonly cultivated plants, is not definitely known, but most probably it is wild only in parts of the Near East and Central Asia. It has been cultivated in the lands bordering the Mediterranean from time immemorial and has become naturalised in many parts; it was introduced to Britain at an early date.

Cydonia oblonga in flower at Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium (5 May 2005). Image © Jan De Langhe.

Quince Cydonia oblonga flowers are faintly flushed pink on the exterior (Colesbourne Park, Gloucestershire, April 2011). Image John Grimshaw.

The soft-yellow, aromatic fruits of the Quince Cydonia oblonga are one of the delights of autumn, whether on the tree or brought indoors to perfume a room before being turned into something delicious. This is 'Meech's Prolific'. (The Dower House, Melbourne, Derbyshire, September 2022). Image John Grimshaw.

Cydonia oblonga 'Meech's Prolific' laden with fruits. (The Dower House, Melbourne, Derbyshire, September 2022). Image John Grimshaw.

Cydonia oblonga forms a modest tree (Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium – 31 October 2019). Image © Jan De Langhe.

The attractive flaking bark of Cydonia oblonga (Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium – 31 October, 2019). Image © Jan De Langhe.

Immature, pear-shaped fruit of Cydonia oblonga (Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium – 20 August 2011). Image © Jan De Langhe.

Leaf variation of Cydonia oblonga, with typical short-stalked ovate to elliptic leaves (Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium – 1 July 2017). Image © Jan De Langhe - Arboretum Wespelaar.

Foliage of Cydonia oblonga showing the initially wooly branchlets and adult leaves (Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium – 1 July 2017). Image © Jan De Langhe - Arboretum Wespelaar.

The young shoot and lamina lower surfaces of Cydonia oblonga are initially covered with greyish wool (Arboretum Het Leen Eeklo, Belgium – 1 July 2017). Image © Jan De Langhe - Arboretum Wespelaar.

Cydonia oblonga.

Quince Leaf Blight Diplocarpon mespili is becoming a significant threat to the successful cultivation of quinces in England, wrecking the foliage and disfiguring any fruit. Image John Grimshaw.

'Lusitanica'

The Portuguese quince is more vigorous than the type, but not quite so hardy in Britain. The fruit is 4 in. long, 3{1/2} in. wide at the thickest part, tapering thence to the stalk; skin deep yellow, covered with grey down. Flowers large, pale rose, and produced in sufficient abundance to make this variety the best worth growing for ornament. It was named C. lusitanica by Miller (Gard. Dict., 1768).

'Maliformis'

The form of the quince that Miller took as the type of his C. oblonga bears pear-shaped fruits. In this form (C. maliformis Mill.) they are apple-shaped.

'Vranja'

This was introduced from and long grown near Vranja in S. Serbia, Yugoslavia. The fruit is very fragrant, of a clear shining gold, and said to have a softer flesh than most quinces. ‘Bereczki’ is similar.The fruit of the quince when raw is harsh and astringent, and unfit for food, but it has long been grown in orchards for flavouring apple-pies, ices, and various confections. The pear-shaped form is perhaps the handsomest of all hardy fruits. The quince is largely employed as a stock on which pears are grafted.