Quince, Cydonia oblonga Mill., may be the golden apple referred to in the Bible, although it is more likely to have been apricot, Prunus armeniaca L. Although quince is not much for eating fresh it makes one of the best jellies due to it being so tart. The first lady where I go to church tried to stump me on identifying plants by bringing in some quince fruit, but I identified it by name before she could even ask if I knew what it was.
Flowering quince is actually a different genus, Chaenomeles Lindl., but it is covered here due to limited space. The flowers are a reddish orange but white flowered varieties exist. They are among the first ornamental plants to flower in the spring thus they are often bit by frost. Fruiting is relatively rare partially due to the early flowers getting killed by frost. I have seen where it persist long after habitation such as the very first one I noticed after taking a dendrology class because it was blooming deep inside the Sipsey Wilderness Area where the trail was cut through a large clump.
