The first time I experienced baked Quince a few years ago I was delighted with how sweet and delicious this fruit was. The next few days I nibbled on the baked quince chunks cold and they were equally delicious. Like nature's candy.

This property has a quince tree and last fall we had a nice harvest. I prepared the quince in a sauce, just like I would prepare apples in an apple sauce - Skin on! I simply cubed up the quince and cooked it until it represented a sauce. Like an apple, Quince has tons of pectin and so there is no need to cook it down. Once it is a sauce it will thicken up.

I brought the quince sauce to our thanksgiving meal with friends and it was the perfect companion to other savory foods like slow cooked lamb. There were much leftovers and I enjoyed the quince sauce in yogurt and on pancakes. It has a very sweet yet somewhat sour and floral flavor. It is hard to imagine the cooked quince tasting so good if you had a bite of it raw which is quite hard and astringent!

Now I also saved some quince seed and it had some coating on the outside of the seeds. For store-ability I decided to soak the seeds and remove the coating. I was so surprised at how much the Quince seeds did gel up into an extremely thick gel. If you have ever experienced Chia seeds gelling up, this was much more gelling. In fact when I added more water the gel just got thicker. Finally I had to add quite a bit of water and change the gel several times before the seeds were cleaned.

What I had discovered was the medicinal quality of the seeds being mucilaginous... more mucilaginous than anything else I have encountered to tell you the truth!

Homestead Quince – Cydonia oblonga

Life cycle: Perennial / Ease of propagation: Moderate / Hardiness zone: 5-9

Being in the Rosaceae family, the Quince is related to the Apple and pear and it shows. The fruit looks like a cross between an apple and a pear, and yellow in color. When ripe it smells floral, like an apple. The quince fruit is extremely firm when it is ripe and very astringent. Typically it is left to over-ripen, or blet, or it is cooked. In either case the cooked or bletted fruit is deliciously and surprisingly sweet like candy. I really enjoy baking the quince until it is soft and sweet. It can also be used in jams, syrup, sauces and pies. The Quince’s spring time blossoms are quite beautiful, but are not to be confused with the flowers of the Chaenomeles speciosa (Flowering Quince / Japanese Quince).

The Quince ripened here this year late October into mid-November. I wait until they start dropping from trees and then collect all the ripe ones, checking on them every few days. I really appreciate the fact that the quinces hardness allows it to store very well in cold dry conditions. I haven’t tested how long they would last but kept cold I imagine they could stay in good shapes for months through the winter here. Anyway I haven’t been able to let mine last that long before I enjoy them! In a warmer climate the quince will over-ripen to that sweet stage much faster, but warmer climates also risk fungal problems with the Quince tree.

Quince seedlings can be used as root-stock for other Quince varieties and some pears. In fact the Quince is often used as dwarfing stock for pears. The Quince will also sucker and may be a good hedgerow candidate. We let a horse hangout in the space where this Quince tree resides and it tried a big bite out of one of the ripe Quinces and must not have liked the astringency because she didn’t go back for seconds! I suspect deer would have a similar reaction, and other than protecting young trees from predators, older trees may not need as much protection from deer and some livestock. This tree isn’t suffering from any pests for that matter and is quite healthy despite not having had any special attention for many years.

Quince seeds gel up when soaked and become mucilaginous, similar to flax seeds, and can be used to treat certain respiratory diseases in children.

Sowing Instructions

Seeds require 3 months cold stratification. Sow in pots/trays and keep slightly moist but not sopping wet through the winter and watch for germination in spring/summer. Alternatively stratify the seeds in the refrigerator in moist but not sopping sphagnum moss or coconut coir for three months and then place in pots or trays. Once sprouts are large enough, prick out into their own pots. Transplant in the fall or the following spring.