Quince Tree
Description. The ordinary quince tree grows often to the height and bigness of a reasonable apple-tree, but more usually lower, and crooked, with a rough bark, spreading arms and branches far abroad. The leaves are somewhat like those of the apple-tree, but thicker, broader, and fuller of veins, and whiter on the under side, not dented at all about the edges. The flowers are large and white, sometimes dashed over with a blush. The fruit that follows is yellow, being near ripe, and covered with a white frieze, or cotton; thick set on the younger, and growing less as they grow to be thorough ripe, bunched out oftentimes in some places; some being like an apple, and some like a pear, of a strong heady scent, and not durable to keep; and is sour, harsh, and of an unpleasant taste to eat fresh; but being scalded, roasted, baked, or preserved, becomes more pleasant.
Place. It best likes to grow near ponds and water sides, and is frequent through this land.
Time. It flowers not until the leaves come forth. The fruit is ripe in September and October.
Government and virtues. Old Saturn owns the tree. The fruit has a strong, and very pleasing smell, and an austere acid taste. Its expressed juice, taken in small quantities, proves a mild, cooling, astringent stomachic medicine, and is of great efficacy in sicknesses, vomiting, eructations, and purgings. A grateful cordial, and lightly restringent syrup, is made by digesting three pints of the clarified juice, with a drachm of cinnamon, half a drachm of ginger, and the same quantity of cloves, in warm ashes, for the space of six hours, then adding a pint of red port, and dissolving nine pounds of fine sugar in liquor, after straining it. And an useful jelly is made, by boiling the juice with a sufficient quantity of sugar, till it attains a due consistence.
The seeds abound with a soft mucilaginous substance, which they readily give out to boiling water, rendering it slimy, and almost like the white of an egg. This preparation is an excellent medicine for sore mouths, and may be used with advantage to soften and moisten the mouth and throat in fevers, and other disorders.
Quinces, when they are green, help all sorts of fluxes in men or women, and choleric lasks, casting, and whatever needs astriction, more than any way prepared by fire; yet the syrup of the juice, or the conserve, are very conducible, much of the binding quality being consumed by the fire. If a little vinegar be added, it stirs up the languishing appetite, and the stomach given to casting; some spices being added, comforts and strengthens the decaying and fainting spirits, and helps the liver oppressed, that it cannot perfect the digestion: it corrects choler and phlegm. If you would have them purging, put honey to them instead of sugar; and if more laxitive, for choler, rhubarb; for phlegm, turbith; for watery humours, scammony: but if more forcibly to bind, use the unripe quinces, with roses and acacia, hypocistis, and some torrified rhubarb. To take the crude juice of quinces, is held a preservative against the force of deadly poison; for it has been found most certainly true, that the very smell of a quince has taken away all the strength of the poison of white hellebore. If there be need of any outward binding and cooling of hot fluxes, the oil of quinces, or other medicines that may be made thereof, are very available to anoint the belly or other parts therewith; it likewise strengthens the stomach and belly, and the siuews that are loosened by sharp humours falling on them, and restrains immoderate sweatings. The mucilage taken from the seeds of quinces, and boiled in a little water, is very good to cool the heat, and heal the sore breasts of women. The same, with a little sugar, is good to lenify the harshness and hoarseness of the throat, and roughness of the tongue. The cotton or down of quinces boiled, and applied to plague-sores, heals them up; and laid as a plaister, made up with wax, it brings hair to them that are bald, and keeps it from falling, if it be ready to shed.