Last updated on May 22nd, 2023 at 09:07 am

The flowering quince (Chaenomeles speciosa) is a thorny, multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with gorgeous red, orange, white, or pink flowers and glossy, dark green leaves. Flowering quince, related to roses, has a thorny habit and is easy to cultivate, making it a suitable choice for barrier or border plantings. 

Quince flower is easy to cultivate and maintain for most gardeners. The flowering quince is a member of the rose family, as shown by the thorny stems and rose-like blooms and leaves. It is one of the most ancient landscape plants cultivated throughout Asia for thousands of years.

Chaenomeles comes from the Greek words chaino, which means “to divide,” and meles, which means “an apple,” referring to the fruit’s form. An inconsistency between the plant and its name is explained by the fact that the fruit was wrongly thought to be divided. The scientific name for this species is speciosa, which means “showy.”

Although all quince species produce flowers, they are commonly called “flowering quince” by gardeners in the West. This is because they are planted for their blooms rather than their fruits. These plants have also been referred to as “Japanese quince,” The common term “japonica” was extensively used in the 19th and 20th centuries. The terms “japonica” and “Japanese quince” were (and still are) often used to refer to these flower blossoms, regardless of species.

What does the Quince flower symbolize?

The quince flower blooms before the leaves, covering the branches with dense crimson, white, or a combination of red and white petals. The quince flower’s meaning is seen as a sign of perseverance and the ability to cope with adversity.

A quince flower aligns your willpower with your heart power, allowing you to be a caring parent with strong limits. It also represents being a leader who makes decisions from a place of decisive strength and compassion.

This flower symbolizes being confident enough to reveal your weakness without being weak and to be aggressive without being bossy. Quince is a tough and vigorous shrub, yet the blooms are compact and delicious. Some, like the rose, have a lot of thorns—this is a plant that can defend itself.

The blooms are gorgeous, and the fruits have a wonderful smell that some describe being seductive and heart-opening. That is the meaning a quince flower conveys—be open-hearted but ferociously capable of self-defense.

All in all, the quince flower symbolic meanings are:

  • good luck
  • prosperity
  • love
  • happiness
  • fertility
  • wisdom
  • beauty
  • constancy
  • immortality

Meaning of the Quince flower colors

Red color

With an explosion of brilliant, coral-red blooms that cover every limb of this beautiful shrub, the red flowering quince heralds the end of winter. 

A red quince flower represents the feeling of adding color to the bleak, cold winter landscape and heralding the advent of spring warmth. The red flowering quince is a symbol of life and energy.

White color

White quince flowers symbolize reverence, humility, purity, innocence, grief, and compassion. These blossoms may be strong and dazzling or soft and self-effacing in a bouquet.

Pink color

Gentle light pink colors evoke feelings of joy, pleasure, and love. The soft pink quince flower is a sign of elegance and purity and a highly romantic flower.

Orange color

Orange quince flowers indicate passion and excitement due to their vivid orange hue—they are also handed out to symbolize warmth and pleasure. 

The double rose-like shrub blooms cover the branches with a rich orange hue for an exquisite yet natural-looking explosion of color.

Interesting facts about the Quince flowers

  • Flowering quinces are popular in ikebana, a Japanese flower arrangement technique. The bushes are also amenable to espalier, which is attaching a shrub to a frame and trimming it to grow formally against a wall.
  • The Japanese quince is widely used in bonsai, and numerous horticultural variants with red, pink, or white blooms have been developed.
  • Flowering quince (Cydonia oblonga) and fruiting quince (Cydonia oblonga) are often confused (Chaenomeles speciosa). 
  • Quince flower plants are planted for their flowers rather than their fruit. In the fall, though, certain varieties produce tiny, firm, deliciously scented fruits that you can smell from a long distance.
  • The golden apples Eurystheus asked Hercules to acquire for him from a hidden garden were quinces in mythology, and the legendary strongman went through several hardships and sufferings to obtain them.
  • The fruits alluded to in both tales are “genuine” quinces grown by a tiny tree classed as Cydonia oblonga and are perfectly edible without cooking or sweetening. It has been argued that the apple in the Garden of Eden was also a quince.
  • The quince flower is often mistaken for the beautiful Japanese cherry blossoms.
  • This was said to be the golden apple that Paris presented to Aphrodite, and the ancients revered it. The Greeks called them Cydonian apples after a city on the island of Crete.

How to grow Quince flowers

Flowering quince is adaptable and easy to grow, tolerant of heat, dry conditions, and a wide range of soil types.

  1. Plant the flowering quince shrubs in well-drained loam with slightly acidic or neutral soil pH for the best flowering display.
  2. Choose a spot exposed to full sunlight.
  3. Mulch around the base to keep weeds at bay and soil moisture in place.
  4. Feed the plants with a slow-release, all-purpose fertilizer before new growth forms in early spring, or amend the soil with compost.

How to care for Quince flowers

  1. Once established, young quince plants should water regularly during dry periods.
  2. Apply a balanced all-purpose fertilizer once in early spring to boost bloom production.
  3. Prune just after flowering is over since the bushes bloom on old wood.
  4. Remove suckers at base level as they appear if you don’t want plants to spread outward.

Best time to gift Quince flowers

The quince stands for rebirth and new beginnings. So a great time to give someone quince flowers is if they are expecting a child or recently had a baby.

You can also gift lovely quince flowers to newlyweds or new couples to wish them luck and happiness in their journey together.

Quinces look unbelievably beautiful in their wide variety of colors. And they are sometimes used in recipes and for healing. So this flower is a wonderful gift for someone going through a hard time. The quince represents standing tall even in the face of adversity.

You can give quinces to your friends or family to celebrate their accomplishments. It is a testament to their success and all the hard work that they have put in.

Conclusion

Quince flowers tell us to remain strong with their beautiful blossoms. They remind us that there are always good things awaiting us in life. They are beautiful and a great gift to give to your loved ones. 

It would be great to give quince flowers to remind someone of all the good and beautiful things in the world.

If you want to know and learn more about flowers, we at PansyMaiden can help you. Check out our fun, easy-to-read, and informative flower-related content that you will surely enjoy!