I inherited one of these about 30 years ago in my first London garden and had no idea what it was at the time. It had been trained against the wrought iron railings of my front garden, with its prickly branches wound in between the uprights creating a regular hazard to passers-by. It produced the most beautiful vermillion flowers in late winter, followed by the small, odd shaped fruit in the summer. My curiosity was piqued one evening when I spotted a local neighbour helping themselves to the fruit, so I looked it up in my trusty RHS Encyclopaedia of Plants and Flowers and identified it.

The Japanese quince (Chaenomeles) originate in South East Asia, and is widely used in Europe as an ornamental plant. Its prickly stems can make an effective barrier, so is ideal for an informal hedge. They grow well in sun or semi-shade and can be planted in any free-draining soil.

For the Walled Garden I will fan-train them against the north and east facing walls in the hope that they will deter cats coming over the wall, and will add some welcome colour at a time of the year when there isn’t a lot happening. I have chosen three varieties:

Chaenomeles xsuperba “Nicoline” with its orange / pink flowers,

Chaenomeles speciosa ‘Rubra’ with its red /pink flowers, and

Chaenomeles superba ‘Crimson and Gold’ with its bright crimson flowers.

The two year old pot grown plants have been planted against the wall and will be trained against a wood trellis for the first couple of years to see how they do. They will need regular pruning to keep them in shape, a task for the autumn after I have picked the fruit. Apparently the fruit have a higher pectin content than apples and the larger quinces, so are good to use for crab apple and other jellies to help make them set.