Order: Rosales

Family: Rosaceae

Subfamily: Maloideae - Pomoideae

Genus: Cydonia

Species : C. oblonga Mill. (C. vulgaris)

Quince (Cydonia oblonga) is a fruit tree from the Rosaceae family, 4–5 m tall, with a red brown body. It has a shallow root system that does not go deep. It can be grown in almost any region at altitudes between 10 and 1000 m. It grows in sandy-loamy warm and permeable soils. It is resistant to cold. The temperature in the 7°C period is ideal for quince. Its production is done by seed, root shoots and cuttings. It is understood from historical research that quince cultivation passed from Anatolia to Greece and Italy, was grown in Greece in 650 BC and spread to other European countries from there. Quince can be found in all countries of the world except Australia today.

Commercially Quince species suitable for long-term storage

Esme Quince, Bread Quince, Lemon Quince

Harvest of Quince

Quince harvest is usually done in the second half of September or October, although it varies according to varieties and regions. Harvesting should be done by hand and carefully in order to prolong the storage life of the fruit. In addition, late harvest of quince has a direct effect on shortening the storage life of the fruit. Therefore, timely harvesting is important. Yield per tree is between 60-100 kg and Turkey average is 25 kg/tree. Although it varies from grower to grower, some criteria that determine the plucking time of the cultivars at harvest can be given as: fruit size, shell color, fruit flesh firmness, water soluble, sugar content, number of days from full bloom to harvest, resistance of fruit to breaking off from the branch, etc., respectively. Whether or not a variety is harvested should be determined by taking these considerations into account. If the harvest is done early; The desired color, taste and size cannot be obtained from the fruit, as well as the duration of resistance to the road and storage is shortened, and the risk of water loss of the fruit increases. If the harvest is done late rather than early; Pre-harvest castings may increase and quality losses may occur in fruits. Harvesting must be done by hand and the plucked fruits must be carefully placed in collection containers. Otherwise, we will increase the rate of damage to the fruits. Harvested fruits should be taken to the market as soon as possible after being subjected to the separation and grading process, or to storage environments by being treated with some chemicals (to reduce storage losses). According to the rootstock used and the cultural processes applied, there are great differences between the beginning of the tree and the yield per tree. If pear or other strong growing rootstocks are used as rootstock, a period of at least 5-6 years is needed for the trees to bear fruit economically. If rootstocks such as weakly growing quince clones are used instead of strong growing rootstocks, this period is 3 or 4 years. However, if densely planted (1 X 4m) and two-year-old branched seedlings are used using weakly growing rootstock, this period is two years. Considering the yields per tree, the yields of varieties grafted on strong rootstocks that naturally form large trees may seem high.

Suitable conditions for the storage of Quince

As with all fruits, the product should be brought to the coldstore as soon as possible after harvest, and it should be put into the cold chain by lowering the core temperature with pre-cooling. Reducing the core temperature as soon as possible is the golden rule for long-term storage in quince as in all fruits. It depends on this to maximize the storage time in the quince product. Quince's highest freezing point is -2°C. The most important factor in quince storage is the optimum storage condition at 0/2°C and 90% relative humidity. The development of quinces in storage is similar to apples. The storage period is 2-3 months and the fruits to be processed are ripened at 20°C. Quince needs 3-4 months of storage, 1°C temperature, 90-95 humidity.

Controlled Atmosphere Storage of Quince

Quince can be stored in a controlled atmosphere for up to 7 months with approximately 2% O2 and 3% CO2 values when suitable conditions are provided.

In general, one of the most important factors in terms of storability in fruit species is the sugar content of the fruit. The high sugar content in fruit is a feature that accelerates fermentation. Therefore, it is possible to say that even in different sweeter varieties of the same fruit, the storage times are shortened inversely. Apart from that, even in species suitable for long-term storage, harvest time is very important for similar reasons. The harvest time of the harvested fruits should be done neither before nor after this time, and on the right days as it should be. This situation is associated with the amount of solid matter and sugar taken from the tree before harvest in order to extend the storage period of the fruit.

Our Controlled Atmosphere System Equipments for Grape Storage    

 - Controlled Atmosphere automation

 - Nitrogen Generator

 - Carbon Dioxide Scrubber


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