Garden Variety Quince

pdbbonsai

This is your typical garden variety quince. (Chaenomeles) I have had it for a few years and it basically just sits on the back of my stands. I love the way it flowers, and the back budding (suckering) provides loads of options.

I posted this on IBC last spring, some here may remember it being discussed over there. There are some that couldnt stand it, and those that thought it had potential.

What is your thoughts?
Have any of you ever worked a quince before? I am particularly interested in what many of you are thinking in regards to the roots.

Paul

Attached Images

quince.jpg (43.8 KB, 148 views)

__________________
It is essential to experience all the times and moods of one good place. (Thomas Merton)

BonsaiTalk is one good place. (me)

Advertisement

pdbbonsai

some buds

Attached Images

quince buds2.jpg (42.4 KB, 139 views)

__________________
It is essential to experience all the times and moods of one good place. (Thomas Merton)

BonsaiTalk is one good place. (me)

pdbbonsai

oh I love these. This tree even fruited this year, I have never seen a quince fruit before now, Got pretty big, then a bug got inside and gutted it.....waaaaaaah.

Paul

Attached Images

quince blossom.jpg (68.9 KB, 140 views)

__________________
It is essential to experience all the times and moods of one good place. (Thomas Merton)

BonsaiTalk is one good place. (me)

FredL

Paul, I share your enthusiasm for Quince. I find it totally unique and possessing a sort of beauty really unlike any other tree or shrub. This Fall, I got three at the annual year end sale at Walmart. I can't wait to get started with them, starting with sorting out how many are actually living in each pot. Somewhere between one and 5 or 6 in each pot, it appears.

From what I've seen, the "Design Paradigm" for Quince is quite different than that of any other tree or shrub. The really good Quinces I've seen don't really have a trunk, but seem to be what I saw termed "Clump Style" in my early looking-at-Bonsai days. They are "basily dominant "(do I have that right?) and want to sucker rather than grow at the top. This basic charactaristic must be accomodated for success with the tree.

Apparently, Chinese Quince is quite different from the species you are presenting and lends itself to more conventional treatment.

There are some great pictures in the Gallery of the current issue of Bonsai Today treated in this way.

It looks like you are going for a traditional Informal Upright design with your tree. From what I've seen, that may be a real rocky road with Quince.

Best Regards, Fred

pdbbonsai

Fred,

I am learning more about the quince as I grow. This past season showed me that it does prefer to grow suckers from the base, and I have to rethink the style choice I already have given it. The other think I could do is let it go for a year and revisit it again. I am concerned with the curent root gnarl that is presently its trunk. Any suggestions?
I have another quince as well, the pair make for interesting color and I think in time will be some nice bonsai.

Paul

__________________
It is essential to experience all the times and moods of one good place. (Thomas Merton)

BonsaiTalk is one good place. (me)

DavidN

I love flowering trees and I enjoy seeing them in a natural configuration. I don't think they conform to the rules very well. Just sit back and enjoy their flowering season.

David

FredL

Paul, I THINK, I saw some guidance on Quince somewhere in Bonsai Today. I'm planning to go back through the last couple of years, probably even earlier, to see what haas been said. I will keep you posted on what I find if you will promise to do the same for me.

Many years ago, the first Bonsai text I ever got, had a fair amount to say about what it termed "Clump Style". I haven't seen much about this for quite awhile. I am also planning to try to find out more about that.

I've been kinda hoping somebody that knew all about these areas would notice us floundering about and rescue us!

Best regards, Fred

mike79

Myself I would lose the long root on the left side, if possible. But the other knarled roots look interesting. Forgive me for going slightly off topic here, but I notice you live in zone 3/4 pdbbonsai (I am in 4). This looks like an interesting species but since they are "only hardy to zone 5", I'm hesitant try them (though I did go ahead and buy one last summer). Are they tough plants? The way I see it, if their roots are hardy but the flower buds are easily damaged, I can protect against that with snow mulch.

FredL

OK, Paul, I have gone back to look at Bonsai Today, Issue 79 and found in the gallery an absolutely gorgeous Chaenomeles speciosa "Toyonishki" that looks exactly what I saw termed years ago "Clump style". It is described as 26" high and, based on this, appears to be, perhaps, 36" or so wide. The "trunks", which look more like branches, really, come up in a great tangle from the base, which looks to be either a sort of very large stump at ground level or perhaps just the top of ground level roots. I guess there or more than 20 trunk/branches all tangled together. It can not POSSIBLY be less than 30 years in cultivation and I'd guess more like 50 or 60. Sounds like a mess the way I'm describing it but it is BEAUTIFUL!

In the description, it says, "This tree was shaped making use of the typical growth habit of Chaenomeles". And not much more.

Now, that's really, really helpful, don't you think?

It looks to me that it was developed using mainly "clip and grow" technique, encouraging lots of suckering over larger and larger area of basal growth. No aerial roots exist; rather just the tops of roots encouraged to grow out horizontally appear to form the base of the tree. Well, bush.

It looks to me that my newly acquired Quinces are due for a few years in the growbeds while I try to develop substantial bases and suckering. This specimen I've just described looks typical of the Flowering Quinces (Chaenomeles sp.)I've seen in the past. They are, of course, much different from Chinese Quince, to which a more upright posture is natural.

Great subject. Thanks for submitting. I'm becoming fascinated with Quince.

Fred