Chaenomeles speciosa Double Delice Passion - Japanese quince

Chaenomeles × superba Double Delice® Passion (‘Minchadf13311’) is a thornless selection of Japanese quince with double, deep pink flowers. This shrub offers an early and generous flowering on its bare branches. Its compact habit makes it ideal for creating a low hedge and for growing in a large container near the entrance or on the terrace. In the garden or in a cut flower arrangement, it proves essential at a time of year that lacks a bit of colour.

Belonging to the horticultural group "superba" (an old hybrid between C. japonica and C. speciosa), ‘Minchadf13311’ Double Delice® Passion is a selection developed by Hortival Diffusion (France) and introduced in 2025. The Double Delice® series also includes the colours Love (red) and Pure (white).
A deciduous shrub with an upright to slightly spreading habit, branched from the base, 'Double Delice Passion' reaches about 1.50m in height and 1m in spread at 10 years of age; grown in a large pot, it remains between 0.80 and 1.20m with light pruning after flowering. The double, deep pink flowers open from February-March to April, before or during the bud burst period of the foliage; They are unscented but rich in nectar, attracting pollinators. The flowers form mainly on wood two years and older; prune the shrub just after flowering to preserve the potential for the following year. The foliage is bright, glossy green, then turns yellow before falling in autumn. Fruiting in this cultivar remains low to almost absent. This very hardy Chaenomeles thrive in most drained soils and tolerates sunny or partly shaded exposures.

Plant Double Delice® Passion where you often walk in late winter: near an entrance, along a path or at the edge of terraces. On a south-facing wall, train a few main branches to form a fan that will flower early and be easy to prune just after flowering. Create a seasonal border by associating it with early flowers and fine textures: Spiraea thunbergii ‘Ogon’ offers light golden foliage, Ribes sanguineum ‘King Edward VII’ takes over in March-April, while carpets of Botanical Daffodils and Muscari cover the base. To vary forms and colours among the Japanese quinces, combine it with the cultivars ‘Cameo’ (semi-double, pink apricot), ‘Jet Trail’ (white, low) and ‘Texas Scarlet’ (deep red).