Crab or Quince

symbiotic1

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I got this tree from a sale back in early December. The seller thought it was a crabapple tree. It didn't have any fruit when I got it and only a couple leaves. Now that it's flowering the flowers don't look like the ones on the crabapple trees a few streets over from me. The ckosest flower i could find was that of a quince. What do y'all think: crabapple or flowering quince?
tmp_24174-IMG_20150118_162304-469796818.jpgtmp_24174-IMG_20150118_162252-1071089481.jpg

These are pics of the crabapple trees near my house:
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Nybonsai12

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Looks like Quince to me.
 

symbiotic1

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Yeah it was a definite score. $20 with the pot. The tree itself is very interesting to me and has nice taper already, then I found out it's in a pretty nice tokoname pot. I think I'll keep it around this size without years growing out the trunk and start developing the branches. along with a much smaller pot, I was also thinking it could look nice tilted into a semi-cascade or cascade too. Or should I just leave it the angle it's at?
 

edprocoat

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Looks lot like a cherry flower. Could be a quince but with that trunk it would most likely be a Chinese quince, but it should have peeling bark if that was so ....; :confused:

ed
 

symbiotic1

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I thought cherry trees tended to be more profuse when they flower? The flower bud in the pic has been swelling to open for a few weeks now and I didn't notice any other flower visible flower buds yet. Maybe it's not old enough to have peeling bark yet or do Chinese quince get that very early on? I guess it might be a surprise and I'll have to wait and see what emerges after the flowers if it's mature enough to fruit!
 

Brian Van Fleet

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Looks like some cultivar of Chaenomeles; Japanese Quince.
Definitely not Pseudocydonia; Chinese Quince.
 

Nybonsai12

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Looks like some cultivar of Chaenomeles; Japanese Quince.
Definitely not Pseudocydonia; Chinese Quince.

Agreed. Op's tree looks exactly like my japanese quince. And chinese quince are not nearly as common in the US.

Does chinese quince produce the suckers on the lower trunk like the one in OP's pic?
 

thumblessprimate1

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That's definitely a Japanese quince, and I like it. Already, it has nice movement and taper. I think it's good you're keeping those branches at the bottom of the trunk; it'll help thicken it some more.
 
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dick benbow

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some ideas for you to consider with your quince. Next repot let's get it into a round pot, so as your developing it's branching you can face it for viewing easily with a simple turn. I think a nice contrasting color would help. Suggest blue or white. Most ripening fruit is a greenish yellow.
Tho many of my quinces are cascade, I'd like to see you focus on allowing your branching to get some diameter before cutting back. I have fewer single trunks in my collection as I prefer
kabudachi or clump style.
It's the natural way quince grow, so if you want single trunk stay on those shoots appearing
from the ground and remove them quickly.
As your design evolves over time, try not to be tempted to switch to clump style, as ofter
your former main trunk weakens and you may loose it,
Developing fruit also is a strength weakener, so limit the ones allowed to develop to maybe one or two.
I work my soil to have a tad more organic in it as quince seem to like a bit more moisture
then many of my other trees.
 

symbiotic1

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Thanks for the feedback so far!

Just out of interest since I know nothing about quinces, what distinguishes a Japanese vs a Chinese quince?

I'm definitely planning to keep this as a single trunk since the one it has is so nice. I'll keep on the suckers to keep them tamed. As for the branching, the tree is still basically how I bought it. I haven't done any work on it yet.

Would now be a good time to repot it or do I need to wait until the emerging leaves harden off before I touch the roots?
 

jk_lewis

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Would now be a good time to repot it or do I need to wait until the emerging leaves harden off before I touch the roots?

Wait until mid February in LA.
 

Brian Van Fleet

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Just out of interest since I know nothing about quinces, what distinguishes a Japanese vs a Chinese quince
Look them up by the botanical name and you'll see.

Pseudocydonia is more treelike, has exfoliating bark, subtle pink flowers in April, is very fast-growing, trunks up nicely, and has larger fruit that persists and ripens to yellow in the late fall. They're not very common. Attached is one of my favorite examples of Pseudocydonia; from Taiken-ten in 2013.

Chenomeles is more shrub like; stooling up from the base, often has thorns, gray bark, bolder flowers (usually before leafing out, but with plenty of exceptions), slow- to fast-growing, but slow to trunk up, will have fruit that usually falls while still green. They're fairly common, but several cultivars can be rare and command $$$.
 

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