Quince Question

i have 2 varieties of quince growing in my front garden - they've been there ever since we moved in and this year i'm going to do something with them.

but how do i know when they are ready to pick? as from what i undertsnad they are a firm fruit so how do i know when they are ripe?

any experience of quinces and advice is much appreciated!

jenny

i plan to make a qince paste/cheese but just wasn't sure when to pick them.  as i say both my varieties have about 8-10 fruit each.  but they also seem very small still.  i think i may start watering and taking proper care instead of leaving it to its own devices!!

i read in a book in the library today that the fruit should be left til just be left til just before the first frosts before picking.

anyone know of any good websites that might tell me?

well i read in a book at home base thats they should be ready in october,  so any time now i guess,  its just mine look very small - how big should i expect them to grow??

well i think i have 2 varieties,  but to be honest i really don't know....

this is one type



and this is the other



and here's both together,



they certainly look different for each other i think!  the first is a lot more yellow and waxy and nobbly,

the second looks more like a pear and has a speckled colour almost

hmm well two less quinces now,  the looked moudly so i picked them (no bigger than a golf ball i might add!)  thy were the more nobbly yellow ones,

it seems that they are appealing to woodlice as lots on baby woodlice were having a feast!!!

they look much more pear like/shaped than mine!!  does that mean there's something wrong with mine??  

came back after a week away and found 5 on the ground that had fallen naturally but they seem small.

maybe i should pay this bush/plant/tree some more attention care wise - how do you care for you're plant (we've lived here 10 years and this is the first time we've touched the thing!!)

so they'll still be alright to make paste/cheese/butter or whatever you want to call it(!!), with??

The first one looks like cydonia japonica - usually grown for its flowers. The fruits are quote small and nobbly, but have the typical quince smell and taste, although tye are vry sharp and take a lot of sugar to make them palatable.

The 'edible' quince is cydonia oblongata and the fruit is usually larger and more regular. They have a fine woolly coat (a bit like peaches), but it rubs off easier. They are also very sharp, but bake well and make fantastic preserves. they go a beautiful cornelian orange/red when cooked.

the other one - not sure at all, but its leaves don't look like cydonia oblongata leaves - too shiny.

We made preserves out of the cydonia japonica once, and although we got a good set, we ended up throwing it all away as it was just too sharp. Sigh...