An abandoned garden is a great place to go and learn what plants survive in your area. Recently Don found a whole series of spectacular red flowering quinces in an abandoned garden. Flowering quince or Chaenomeles are attractive spikey shrubs valued for their toughness as well as their delicate and colourful flowers, which adorn their bare branches in winter and early spring. In fact, flowering quince are among the first of the blossom plants to flower in winter.
Details
Common name: Flowering quince, Japanese flowering quince, japonica.
Botanic name: There are two main species of flowering quince in Australia: Chaenomeles japonica and C. speciosa. The genus name Chaenomeles comes from Greek words which describe the way the five celled ovary gapes when ripe. The species name japonica means ‘from Japan’ while the second species name, speciosa, means showy. Chaenomeles are part of the rose family, Rosaceae.
Named varieties: There are many named varieties now available. If possible, buy in winter or early spring while the plants are in flower to select the flower colours you like. Colours include salmon (the most commonly seen flowering quince colour), pink, white and red. Flowers are single, semi-double and double.
Varieties to look out for include:
- ‘Apple Blossom’-white flowers turning pink with age.
- ‘Falconnet Charlet’-semi-double, salmon-pink and rose flowers.
- ‘Rosea Plena’-flowers semi-double, pale rose pink.
- ‘Simonii’-flowers semi-double, dark red.
- ‘Winter Cheer’-a small growing cultivar (60-120cm or 2-4′) with scarlet flowers. One of the first to flower, blooming in late autumn and winter.
Climate (see map): Flowering quince tolerates a wide climatic range including drought conditions and cold to at least -10
