Front Property Line

I have sassafras, mimosa, and redbud trees, with a spreading ground cover of periwinkle. I have one dwarf, or small bush quince here as well. It is not my intent to have obvious food at the front. A couple of questions...
Do dwarf quince fruit? I am considering propagation, but if no fruiting, it is not worth the time, to me. This was a plant from a friend of a friend... cultivar unknown. I have not seen fruit, and the thing has been a bit mistreated, so I wonder if that is my fault?
Will the periwinkle overwhelm the quince?
This is my type of periwinkle
http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=VIMI2

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:I have sassafras, mimosa, and redbud trees, with a spreading ground cover of periwinkle. I have one dwarf, or small bush quince here as well. It is not my intent to have obvious food at the front. A couple of questions...
Do dwarf quince fruit? I am considering propagation, but if no fruiting, it is not worth the time, to me. This was a plant from a friend of a friend... cultivar unknown. I have not seen fruit, and the thing has been a bit mistreated, so I wonder if that is my fault?
Will the periwinkle overwhelm the quince?
This is my type of periwinkle
http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=VIMI2

Yes, dwarf quince not only fruit, but they can be very productive. (Not flowering quince, however.) I would look up how to care for them if I were you and start treating your tree with the respect it deserves. Check this site out for some good instructions... http://www.gardeningblog.net/how-to-grow/quinces/

Vinca is a prolific ground cover that can handle sun to shade, so it will spread around your trees. However, it doesn't get very tall and I imagine you can keep it in check by cutting it back in a 3 or 4 foot circle immediately surrounding the tree base. Mulch the base or plant a more compatible ground cover there instead.

As for not wanting obvious food plants in the front yard, you have so many ornamental, yet edible choices for that. Crabapples make excellent jams and jellies, yet most people consider them strictly for decoration. Hibiscus leaves and flowers make excellent teas -- as do the genuine tea shrub, Camillia chinensis (Both hibiscus and camillia flowers are about as ornamental as you can get!) Ornamental kale is a good one for fall/winter. Chrysanthemums are completely edible... etc. I advise doing a search on ornamental edibles or edible landscaping for good ideas.

there is a newish hybrid perennial kale called Kosmic kale. I got some of the plants and they look very pretty to me. they have variegated leaves. I don't know how cold hardy it is. apios americana has pretty flowers and is a nice vine. nasturtiums are considered totally ornamental but I adore them in salad and you can even pickle the seeds to make something that tastes enough like capers to work as a substitute. I have made pesto with nasturtium leaves too and it was nice. lots of cities use mulberry trees as ornamental and ones with white berries won't stain stuff like the dark berries do. I recently read that dahlia bulbs are edible and supposed to be very tasty but I have never tried them, garlic chives are really cute and pretty and might work. lots of herbs are used in landscaping and ornamental like lavender and rosemary and thyme and chamomile. if you live someplace linden trees grow their leaves are edible.

Deb,
I had found that link. I suspect mine is flowering quince as there is no sign of a central trunk, and branches spray out in all directions. It has been here for three years, and was two or so years old when transplanted here. It has reached a towering height of two feet.

Meryt, Thank you for the heads up on the perennial kale. I'll be looking for it next spring.

As for the other edible landscaping... Hm. The front is pretty much full of hidden useful or edibles. Sassafras, http://www.eattheweeds.com/sassafras-root-beer-rat-killer/, mimosa, http://www.eattheweeds.com/albizia-julibrissin-tripinnated-lunch-2/, and redbud, http://www.eattheweeds.com/eastern-red-bud-pea-pods-on-a-tree/, periwinkle, http://medicinalherbinfo.org/herbs/Periwinkle.html

I also have mulberries elsewhere. AND I know of a stand of wild quince (rubs hands with an evil grin), have not yet verified that they have good fruit to cook. I also travel with a shovel in the trunk. And rope, and duct tape. Oh no! Am I dangerous? Not to humankind!

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:Deb,
I had found that link. I suspect mine is flowering quince as there is no sign of a central trunk, and branches spray out in all directions. It has been here for three years, and was two or so years old when transplanted here. It has reached a towering height of two feet.

Meryt, Thank you for the heads up on the perennial kale. I'll be looking for it next spring.

As for the other edible landscaping... Hm. The front is pretty much full of hidden useful or edibles. Sassafras, http://www.eattheweeds.com/sassafras-root-beer-rat-killer/, mimosa, http://www.eattheweeds.com/albizia-julibrissin-tripinnated-lunch-2/, and redbud, http://www.eattheweeds.com/eastern-red-bud-pea-pods-on-a-tree/, periwinkle, http://medicinalherbinfo.org/herbs/Periwinkle.html

I also have mulberries elsewhere. AND I know of a stand of wild quince (rubs hands with an evil grin), have not yet verified that they have good fruit to cook. I also travel with a shovel in the trunk. And rope, and duct tape. Oh no! Am I dangerous? Not to humankind!

Joylyn

Joylynn, If the tree was transplated at two years, it may take a couple more years just to regain the root system lost in transplant before going full tilt into top growth-- I wouldn't give up on it yet..

"If the tree was transplanted at two years, it may take a couple more years just to regain the root system lost in transplant"

Uhhh. Okaayyy. I moved it again this spring. Poor baby. So we wait to find out. I really like the flower display, I was not intending to toss it on the compost heap. Maybe in a few years, I might get fruit from it. If it is not purely ornamental.
I think this fall will see me at that stand of fruiting quince.

i have always read and heard flowering quince doesn't make fruit and is a totally different plant but now raintree nursery sells flowering quince and says they are ornamental and make fruit

http://www.raintreenursery.com/Unusual_Edibles/Flowering_Quinces/

Well, I can't buy another variety. But Maybe the wild quince tree, to be dug up this fall, can be put close enough to do the job. Could 30 feet be close enough? Maybe?