![]() Nursery containers come in a variety of different sizes, and old-school nursery slang has stuck. The bark tends to be gray to brown, with moderate ridges and flakes that become thin plates with age.All tree, and nothin' but the tree! We measure from the top of the soil to the top of the tree the height of the container or the root system is never included in our measurements. Mature bark of Colorado Spruce is often never seen, as this tree is usually allowed to branch to the ground throughout its life. There are many forms of Colorado Spruce in terms of growth habit - these include dwarf globes that serve as landscape shrubs, weeping forms that cascade, and narrow columns that serve as evergreen accents. This spruce has cones that are different from the other spruces, as they have flaky scales that are thin and flexible, rather than stiff and rigid (as with all evergreens, various structures can have the whitish sap drip on them, including the cones that are shown). ConeĬolorado Spruce is monoecious, with male flowers scattered throughout the canopy serving a source of pollen for the female flowers (immature cones). Some forms have the traditional blue or blue-silver colors (and are usually referred to as Blue Spruce), while others are distinctly green (and are called Green Spruce in the nursery industry). While many Colorado Spruce occur as the blue to blue-silver foliaged forms, this species exhibits great variation in needle color, caused by the amount of wax that covers the surface of the needles. As with all evergreens, the new needles of spring have a strikingly lighter color as compared to the growth of previous seasons. Identifying Features - Colorado Spruce LeafĬolorado Spruce, among the three most common spruces found in Ohio, has the longest and sharpest needles, and they radiate outward from the twig (left), rather than point forward. For these reasons, planting of Colorado spruce is not recommended in Ohio, and trees better suited to growing in Ohio’s environment should be considered instead. The greater rainfall and humidity relative to its native range makes Colorado spruce very susceptible to fungal diseases like Rhizosphaera and Stigmina needlecasts and Cytospora and Phomopsis canker, which lead to needle discoloration, progressive branch dieback from the lower branches upwards, and eventually tree death. ![]() Soil and climate conditions in Ohio are very different from the native range of Colorado spruce in western North America. Potential Problems - In recent years, several diseases of Colorado spruce and its cultivated varieties have had a serious impact on this tree where it has been planted in Ohio. It grows in full sun to partial sun in zones 3 to 7. It survives under seasonal drought once it is established, and takes well to city pollution. ![]() It is also adaptable to a variety of less than favorable conditions, including poor, clay, rocky, dry soils of acidic, neutral, or alkaline pH. Planting Requirements - prefers moist, acidic soils that may be organic, sandy, or loamy the soils must not be poorly drained or wet. As a member of the Pine Family, it is related to other Spruces, as well as the Firs, Larches, Pines, and Hemlocks. Perhaps no other evergreen tree is as cherished for home landscapes as Blue Spruce, its more common name in the nursery industry. Most trees may easily reach 50 feet tall by 25 feet wide at the base, although in the wild much taller specimens are commonly reached. Tree forms are not usually limbed up, but allowed to branch to the ground throughout their life. Many selections have been made for both foliage color and growth habit, the latter of which may be dwarf, weeping, broad, columnar, or formally pyramidal into maturity. Although it is commonly seen in forms that display blue or blue-silver needles, green-needled forms also exist. Fall 2022 DNAP eNews - Prairie RestorationĬolorado Spruce ( Picea pungens), native to regions of the Rocky Mountains in the western and southwestern United States, is planted throughout the United States and Canada as an ornamental evergreen, including all of Ohio.
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