Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Quince (Cydonia oblonga)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called common quince, fruiting quince.

More about quince

About Quince

Cydonia oblonga · also called common quince, fruiting quince · edible

Common quince is a small deciduous fruit tree grown for hard, aromatic golden pomes that ripen too late to eat raw in cool climates but cook into fragrant jelly and membrillo. It is self-fertile, undemanding, and frost-hardy, thriving in a sheltered sunny spot with moisture-retentive soil and minimal pruning once established.

Cold limit: USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree) · RHS H6 (-20 to 30°C)

What quince's hardiness rating actually means

Yes — quince is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H6 and USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. Its RHS rating of H6 means: Hardy throughout the UK and northern Europe. On the US scale that maps to USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −20 to −15 °C. Quince is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

Concretely, for quince as it gets too cold:

It tolerates winter lows to about −20 to −15 °C once established.
Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root.
First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.

Can quince go outside or overwinter — and where?

Plant it out within USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree) and it overwinters with little or no help.
It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy.
The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when quince can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H6 figure above.

Quince hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is quince cold hardy?

Yes — quince is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H6 and USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. An outdoor plant. Quince is hardy across USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree); it belongs in the ground or a frost-proof container, not on a windowsill, and many types actively need a cold winter to perform.

What is the minimum temperature quince can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −20 to −15 °C. Quince is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

What hardiness zone is quince?

Quince is rated USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree) and RHS H6 — Hardy throughout the UK and northern Europe.

Can quince survive winter outside?

Plant it out within USDA 5-9 (outdoor fruit tree) and it overwinters with little or no help. It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy. The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

What happens to quince below its minimum temperature?

It tolerates winter lows to about −20 to −15 °C once established. Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root. First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.