Fruit Trees and Frost – Will You Lose Your Fruit this Spring?

It’s no secret the weather was incredibly warm (and dry!) in March in our area this year. People have been thrilled to see plants greening up and blooming earlier than usual. In fact, many of our flowering fruit trees, such as peaches and apples (including crabapples), are blooming well over two weeks early this year.

The problem is, the earlier these trees start blooming, the more vulnerable they are to spring frosts and freezes that often occur in early-to-mid April. And tonight, we are predicted to get down to 27 degrees (or lower!) in the Pikes Peak region. I used to think that as long as my tree had finished blooming before a major frost like this hit, it was okay and going to have fruit. Last year proved me wrong. And this year, my tree is just starting its bloom with this frost coming.

 

Wild Plum

American Plum (Prunus americana)

Appearance: American plum, a member of the Rose family, is one of the first native woody plants to bloom in the spring, with the white, fragrant, 5-petalled blossoms appearing before the leaves unfold.   There are numerous 1”-2” long, blunt thorns along the branches.  The leaves are long, pointed and oval-shaped.  American Plum bears edible 1” diameter fruit which ripen mid- to late summer, and fall color can be a muted reddish-orange.