Just my $.02, but I would use a greenhouse early in the season to protect against a late freeze, but remove it for the season after the threat of frost passes. This year the last frost was in April so pretty much all fruit was good to go. Other years we’ve had a last frost in mid May. I’ve also seen photos on GF of temporary tree shelters that some members have used to protect against freezing.
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I’m at 4500ft in SW Texas. We get more sun than Denver and it’s hotter. Last yr it didn’t seem like we had any clouds. We’ve only had 5 inches of rain total in almost two yrs.
I’ve grown outside in Texas for 50 yrs and in a greenhouse for the last 16 of those. A good greenhouse with proper control of heat and cold is a much better environment for growing high quality stone fruit than outside. The key is good controls: heater, wet wall, and large exhaust fans. It’s 97 outside here now but the greenhouse hasn’t been over 89. Dew points are low and the wet wall works wonders. Our dew points in summer aren’t too high. But they are higher than Denver and we’re hotter. Keeping a greenhouse cool up there won’t be difficult. In fact I’ll run the greenhouse warmer in summer than what’s possible. Here in summer greenhouse highs are low 90s. I could do a few degrees cooler but 90s isn’t too hot. Palisade, where they grow the best peaches, regularly runs 95-100F when the fruit is getting ripe.
I do appreciate all the input. It’s really been a big help. And I probably will be moving up there. I’m beginning the loan approval process. Don’t need a loan but with current interest rates it makes sense.
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Keep us posted. If it happens, I’ll have to see this greenhouse operation 
Good luck with the property search - these are challenging times for that.
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I’d like to see the greenhouse as well. That’s all new to me so it would be good to learn something different. Sounds like he has a good amount of knowledge running the greenhouse.
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Howdy fruitnut I’m in agreement with what @rossn and @danCO said as far as soils and the contributions. My location in north central Denver has very sandy soil. No I haven’t soil tested for composition but its extremely sandy. My friend in west wheat ridge/golden area has rocky soil with a descent amount of clay but still drains well. He grows peaches just fine. I grow peaches nectarines plums, and cherries fine as well as berries as long as the frost doesn’t get em. Don’t have much bug pressure except for JB, Peach tree borer, and a bug that put a holes in my plums last year. I haven’t figured that one out. My main disease issue is Powdery mildew and maybe some verticillium wilt for my raspberries. Haven’t encountered FB yet but it is prevalent for the front range.
Danco I would do pots forr the blueberries but I already have better things in pots I can’t get from the store.
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Wish I could have someone pick up a bicycle and hold it for a week
I’d pay 100$
A greenhouse is the best frost protection ever. Mine in TX hasn’t been below freezing in 16 yrs and still I can get 900 chill hrs in 45 days. In Arvada chill hrs would be by default. And the plan would be a lot different than here. Basically heating in winter just enough to avoid winter injury and hold days below 60F. So that might be 10-20F minimums and mostly 40s and 50s by day mid Nov until mid Febr. That’s a good chilling regime for stone fruit. That would give a 9 month growing season, 270 days, that’s California like, the colder parts of CA. Here it’s 10.5 months and longer than most of CA.
What are you growing in pots that you like better than blueberries?
That type of growing season would be nice in a year, as well as controllable frosts.
I have figs and guavas in pots right now. Both better than blueberries in my opinion when the quality is there.
Anybody, Does this look like a peach tree borer? To me it’s too many yellow bands and wrong color antennae as well as fuzz in the face.
They say misery loves company… Anyone else get blasted by hail yesterday in Denver? My vegetables probably got it the worst of it (tomatoes are basically just stems now) but a lot of my developing fruit took a beating - I’d guess about 50% damaged tree fruit.
I guess it’s just the law of averages catching up with me as I’ve avoided big hail storms the past two years.
Sorry for your loss! At least it is early enough they may recover. We were spared up in Fort Collins. Everything is looking good; peaches and plums set very heavily and the hot weather veggies are loving the sun and heat. We got hailed out two years in a row in ‘17 and ‘18 so fingers crossed we get spared a bit longer.
Aww that sucks dude I was going to say maybe one of the bonuses about this completely unlivable heat is we fast forwarded through the worst of the hail season. So far it’s all crazy amounts of fruit set
I agree with Rich that does suck @Scooter .
I am wondering I have multiple Montmorency seedling planted by the birds and multiple mulberry seedlings again thanks to the birds. The mulberry look most likely they could be Morus alba’s or alba rubra hybrids. Anyone want any for rootstock.
How well do your mulberries grow here? I was thinking they were very marginal here.
My mulberries do pretty good. The fruit is delicious to me and the plants seem hardy enough for our conditions. I have a IE in the ground now along with a mulberry I found in a vacant lot and rooted cuttings. Neither one of my trees are huge but they grow well. I am talking like they already have a foot of growth and they just leafed out around the 20th of May. @DDGColorado_z5ab
Hi, I don’t live in Colorado, but looking for a favor from someone who does. I’ve been trying to obtain the original Red Jacket gooseberry, which is now being marketed in your area as Comanche. So far no nurseries that stock it sell online. I would gladly pay someone to go buy one and ship it to me here in Fairbanks, Alaska. It supposedly outperformed all others in Cheyenne, Wyoming trials. It’s hard to find gooseberries that survive the winters here; Pixwell and Hinnonmaki Red have done the best so far. I attempted to root Red Jacket cuttings from USDA, but none took. Any takers? Maybe you have some industrious kids who need spending money? There must be a way to get one of these things! There’s another Red Jacket from Canada, but the original from England (aka Comanche) is what I want. Thanks!
Vic Johanson
Fairbanks, Alaska
Vic - 2 thoughts… one, you might want to post where it is supposed to be picked up… it’s a big metro area, and if it is close to someone, you might have a better chance of success, though that depends on folks having enough time.
You might also have good success posting up a gig on craigslist. You might also want to check the weather… we had 3 days in a row of 100 degrees this week.
Yeah I just got back and wanted to look at the plants but just a round trip
It was hot On way back train delayed 4 hours
train tracks so hot it had to go 10 miles per hour to arrive in Denver got my bikes, but no vacation so trip was a big waste of money.
Do you grow seeds I ask maybe another member can help
our wild ones I know of do not produce much.
Not sure If I’d trust Craigslist, but maybe garden web could be another place as well or figbid.
Doesn’t some goose berries Spread white Pine blister rust (on pine Pinus strobus)
I know some species are Okay since they do not harbor it –
is that pine in Alaska I know it is in Eastern USA but dought it’s in AK.
Just killed my first JB of the season on a plum tree. The battle begins☹.
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