Rigidly straight, formal, statuesque, and densely needled, the Colorado spruce (Picea pungens) is one of America’s most unusual conifers.
In its native home among the Rockies from Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado southward to New Mexico, it may tower 100′ feet above the ground, for it is a high-country tree and would have little use for the easier life of southern lowlands.
Its color, which varies from somewhat bluish green to a pale, silvery gray blue, in such rugged surroundings, finds a perfect setting.
Many years ago, this great evergreen attracted the attention of nursery workers because of its outstanding appearance, and its reception by the public in the Northeast quickly became cordial and widespread.
Today it is the most popular of the spruces. Much of this enthusiasm is deserved, but it has blinded many homeowners to specific basic facts.
As a result, we now see countless Colorado spruces, usually under the pseudonym blue spruce, that are more of a blot on the nearby landscape than an asset.
Let me explain: First, we are dealing with a big tree that is as out of place in an average lawn or front yard as a whale in a goldfish bowl.
This would be bad enough if Colorado’s color were an ordinary green, but the significant infusion of blue, which characterizes its needles, calls extra attention.
Colorado Spruces Placement
Colorado spruces are geared to wide-open spaces; under these conditions, they can be used with superb effect. Several specific placements immediately come to mind.
First, a group of four or five, well spaced to allow for future growth, in a far corner of a large open field to create a bold skyline accent.
Second, an occasional specimen before a distant woodland relieves its sameness with a point of color contrast.
And again, on really spacious landscaped grounds, a differently colored distant strong point to key up other features.
You will notice that the needles are stiff, rather long, and very closely spaced. Each hand retains its life and color for seven or eight years, so you can see why the tree as a whole presents such a dense appearance.
The tan-colored cones are handsome, too, as they hang from the branchlets in true spruce fashion. Some of the larger ones are maybe 4” inches long.
Since they cling to their places throughout the winter, you can depend upon their moving picture on any dreary day.
Of course, they do not appear until the tree is of some size—perhaps a dozen feet or so tall. But from then on, the spruce’s cones are an annual occurrence.
44659 by Robert S. Lemmon