Vranja Quince Trees

• Variety: Vranja, the fragrant Serbian Quince
• Latin name: Cydonia oblonga 'Vranja'
• Fruit: Large, pear-shaped and fragrant. Green, ripening to golden-yellow
• Use: Cooking: jelly, membrillo, pies and roasts
• Sold as: Bareroot maiden, bush and half-standard
• Rootstock: Quince A
• Mature size: 4 to 5m tall by 2.5 to 4m wide
• Pollination: Self-fertile
• Picking: October
• Position: Full sun, warm and sheltered. Can be fan-trained on a wall
• Soil: Deep and moisture-retentive, but never waterlogged
• Hardiness: H5, hardy through a cold winter
• Delivered: Bareroot, November to April. Collection from Castle Cary also available

Vranja is the Quince grown for its scent: large, pear-shaped fruit that ripen from green to golden-yellow in October and perfume a room. It is self-fertile, makes a tree 4 to 5 metres tall on Quince A, and wants your warmest, most sheltered spot.

Vranja Quince Trees

Vranja: Quince trees (which are now known as Cydonia oblonga rather than Pyrus cydonia) produce wonderfully scented fruit which when ripe are almost gold in colour. The quince is a native of Dagestani mountainsides and as such is extremely hardy but, like all quinces, needs decent sun to fruit well. As it's planted further north, Vranja needs an increasingly warm spot, and by the time it gets to Yorkshire, a sunny wall or corner is necessary for reliable crops.

Browse our range of quince trees or the full variety of fruit trees.

As well as being edible, quince trees are ornamental and look as good as the centrepiece of a lawn as your average garden tree. Vranja (like Meeches Prolific and Serbian Gold, the other quinces that do well in the UK) is self-fertile. It carries heavy crops of very fragrant fruit (quinces were once used as room fresheners) which can be picked in September and October. Vranja probably carries more individual fruit than Meeches or Serbian Gold, so they tend to be a bit smaller.

If you want to buy quince trees and have never grown them before, this is probably the one we would recommend to a beginner.

Quinces like good soil with plenty of well rotted organic matter added to it. The fruit can be huge and so need plenty of moisture in the ground. At the same time they hate standing water so good drainage is really important (just think of an Iranian mountainside).

Planting Companions

We grow three Quinces. Serbian Gold is Vranja's countryman: Vranja is the one for fragrance, and Serbian Gold the one that stands up to leaf blight. Meech's Prolific is the third. The Nottingham Medlar grows on the same rootstock and ripens after the Quinces. See all our Quince trees, and dust the roots with Rootgrow as you plant.

Why Buy Your Quince Tree from Ashridge?

Field grown specifically for us and lifted fresh to order, your Vranja Quince is on Quince A rootstock, and maidens are pre-pruned before despatch for the form you choose. Bareroot trees are guaranteed for 12 months. Ashridge has sold plants since 1949 and is a Which? Best Plant Supplier 2025.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you eat a Quince raw?

Not a great idea. A raw Quince is hard, astringent and gritty, and cooking transforms it. In the UK every Quince we sell is a fruit for the kitchen: jelly, membrillo, pies and roasts.

Does Vranja get Quince leaf blight?

Any Quince can in a wet summer. No fungicides are approved for domestic use, so clear and burn the fallen leaves in autumn. Serbian Gold is the variety that kept its leaves at RHS Wisley in the very wet summer of 2023.

Do you need two Quince trees?

No. Vranja is self-fertile, so one tree on its own will crop.

How big does Vranja grow?

About 4 to 5 metres tall and 2.5 to 4 metres wide on Quince A, which is the rootstock for all our Quinces. Allow several years for it to reach that size.

Can you fan-train Vranja on a wall?

Yes. A sunny wall is the way to ripen Quinces in the North, and Vranja can be fan-trained. Start with a maiden. The RHS says the flowers are open to frost, so a warm wall helps there too.

How do you prune a Quince?

Lightly, in winter. A Quince fruits mainly at the tips of last year's shoots, so do not shorten every shoot as you would on a spur-pruned Apple, or you cut off next year's crop. Shape a young tree to an open centre.

When are the trees delivered?

Bareroot only, from November to April, while the trees are dormant. You can order at any time of year and your tree is lifted and sent once the season opens.