Japanese quince clump

[parhamr]

I recently dug up this bush from my yard. It was planted by the former homeowner in clay-heavy soil and several winters of ice storms had made a mess of this quince. I think it’s a Chaenomeles japonica because the flowers are red, the leaves are thin, it has large thorns, and the bark is dark-ish (correction is welcome!).

In 2014 I tried to take some cuttings in May but I was unable to provide the right conditions and they all died. In 2015 I performed a heavy prune to chop it back, pinched off the flower buds to encourage vegetative growth, fed with Osmocote 14-14-14, and trenched around the roots with a spade to prepare it for collection.

After fighting with the deep, coarse roots and clay soil for a few hours I was able to squeeze it into a 15-gallon grow bag. The growth habit is a bit crazy and it appears I might be able to separate at least four distinct trees out of this. Underneath the surface perlite is a mass of fine feeder roots that will eventually need to be cleaned of its clay loam.

Jan 18


Feb 8


Updates will come… probably as the flowers burst and then again in a year or two as I make progress on reducing this mess. I might try an air layer off the thickest trunk.

 

[aml1014]

Looks pretty nice, can't wait to see the flower. I'm really glad I'm not the only one using these grow bags.

Aaron

 

[parhamr]

I'm sill waiting on the flowers. They're getting so close!

 

[MichaelS]

Parhamr, That's Chaenomeles speciosa (like the one in my pic) or the hybrid with japonica - C x superba. The japonicas are much lower growing and usually have an orange tone in the flowers but they can be red also (never pink as far as I know ). Their leaves are also much smaller than speciosa and they branch more easily. I love them all - can't get enough of them....

 

[parhamr]

 

[thumblessprimate1]

Your flowers have nice shape and color.

 

[GrimLore]

think it’s a Chaenomeles japonica because the flowers are red, the leaves are thin, it has large thorns, and the bark is dark-ish (correction is welcome!).

I am certain you are correct. They can get out of hand pretty easily in these parts and were common in landscape some years ago. Yours looks good!

Here are a couple of shots of one I had the caretaker bring down to manageable size before he took the chainsaw to them at "the farm". I am hoping for a nice show this Spring and an opportunity to dig some -

20 - 25 foot long, 8 foot front to back, 7 ish on the height. Over fifty years old, was there when Grandmother bought to place;



Thick and overgrown - hoping to find some chunky base -



Grimmy

 

[parhamr]

@GrimLore WOAH! That's amazingly large.

 

[sorce]

Lol......she said that......
About his yew too!

Par....wonderful flowers!

Sorce

 

[parhamr]

Exciting! There are three new shoots pushing up from the roots.

 

[parhamr]

It's getting ready to flower again.

 

[parhamr]

This next growing season I strongly need to perform layering and cutting propagation. This shrub is overgrown and awkward.

 

[parhamr]

 

[parhamr]

I've used grafting tape to tightly wrap some year-old scions to the main trunk to test approach grafting. The latest year of growth still has its leaves.

 

[0soyoung]

I've used grafting tape to tightly wrap some year-old scions to the main trunk to test approach grafting. The latest year of growth still has its leaves.

Why wouldn't it be? The approach scion is still connected to its own roots (even if it is a branch of the same plant).

Are you meaning a side graft wherein the scion is a cutting fitted into a sliced groove on a mother plant's stem (then secured by a wrapping of parafilm or some other type of 'grafting tape')?

 

[parhamr]

Yes, that graft method.

I was expecting this tree would lose all of its leaves, but that will probably only come with the first hard frost.

 

[fredtruck]

I defoliate my quince in mid-November. The leaves are persistent, and might not drop until spring. I've had them last that long. You can leave them on as long as you want, but they mess up a mid-winter floral display.

 

[Giga]

I defoliate my quince in mid-November. The leaves are persistent, and might not drop until spring. I've had them last that long. You can leave them on as long as you want, but they mess up a mid-winter floral display.

mine still has leaves as well

 

[thumblessprimate1]

This next growing season I strongly need to perform layering and cutting propagation. This shrub is overgrown and awkward.

What is your vision or plans for this clump? Do you plan to use it for propagation and practice grafting only?

 

[parhamr]

@thumblessprimate1 good question! I have several paths forward…

Definitely doing:

1. Producing new plants from low-risk layerings and cuttings
2. Strengthening the main clump with years of recovery and good horticulture
3. Investigating the main clump with top-down root work (through the large layer of clay… there may be some awesome roots to expose!)
4. Separating some of the main trunks into discrete plants
5. Removing undesirable branches

Possibilities from which I can choose:

• Separate the main trunk through a layer if the base is terrible
• Graft new, lower branches onto the main trunks if my technique is workable
• Introduce heavy bends into the main trunks to make the clump more interesting
• Give up on the existing clump and only use it as a mother plant

I have visions of using as much of the clump as possible to make something complex and well ramified. As I get familiar with the tree and see its habits I am gradually moving in both directions—increased confidence about risky maneuvers and recognizing the poor, overgrown qualities of much of the clump.