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Rosaceae
Flowering Quince
Chaenomeles speciosa
Hope, perseverance, fiery love.
- Family
- Rosaceae
- Genus
- Chaenomeles
- Native to
- China
- Bloom season
- Late Winter, Early Spring
- Type
- Deciduous shrub
- Height
- 1.5–3 m
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Low to moderate
- Hardiness
- 4–9
- Lifespan
- Long-lived shrub
Did you know
- Flowering quince blooms when most of the garden is still asleep — sometimes as early as January in mild winters, opening fiery red flowers on bare thorny stems.
- It produces small hard yellow fruits in fall that are inedible raw but make an excellent fragrant jelly.
- The Japanese have grown ornamental quince for centuries and it's a traditional subject for bonsai and ikebana arrangements.
- The Chinese name for the plant translates to 'wood melon' and the fruits have been used in traditional medicine for over 2,000 years.
- Branch cuttings brought indoors in late winter will force into bloom within days — a classic way to bring early spring inside.
Color meanings
Red
Passionate longing