Introduction
The Colorado
Blue Spruce is a natural inhabitant of forests and mountain valleys in
the western United States of America. A popular tree (not a poplar
tree!) used for landscaping worldwide and used as a windbreak, Picea
pungens is a beautiful looking Conifer.
Blue Spruce
trees at maturity range anywhere from 60 to 100 feet tall, some reaching
as tall as 150 feet!
From top to bottom this Spruce has stiff horizontal
branches spreading 10 to 20 feet in diameter and the trunk, up to 5 feet
in diameter. The Colorado Blue Spruce, P. pungens, is a slow
growing tree but with the right conditions
and conservation can grow
quite large. Spruce trees are used all around the country and even grown
internationally. Harvested for wood in the western portion of the
nation, the trees main commercial use is for the sale of Christmas
trees.
The needles of
the Colorado Spruce are primarily concentrated above the stem,
approximately 1 inch in length and brutally sharp.
They consist of 4
sides with 6 stomatal lines on each side allowing for gas exchange (to
learn more
click here). These needles are blue, blue-green in color
sometimes with almost a silver tint to them and very rigid.
Welcome to this
website devoted to the beautiful Blue Spruce. I hope you find it helpful
and interesting, as I enjoyed making it.