Picea pungens Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

Scientific Name: Picea pungens Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.


Classification: Plantae/ Tracheobionta / Spermatophyta / Coniferophyta / Pinopsida / / Pinales / Pinaceae / Picea A. Dietr./ Picea pungens Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.
General Information
Usda SymbolPIPUA
GroupGymnosperm
Life CyclePerennial
Growth HabitsTree
Native LocationsPIPUA

Plant Guide

Uses

Blue spruce has been little used for lumber or wood products because it is rarely abundant in nature and the wood is brittle and often full of knots. It sometimes is cut with Engelmann spruce. Because of its cold hardiness, symmetrical pyramidal form, and waxy, blue-hued foliage, blue spruce is widely planted in ornamental and general landscape settings. Numerous horticultural cultivars have been developed, based on needle color and crown form. It is used considerably for Christmas trees and blue spruce plantations have been established in the northeastern US – these probably the source of escapes reported for several states far from its native range (Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland). Blue spruce is the state tree of Colorado and of Utah.

Status

© J. Scott Peterson USDA, NRCS, NPDC @ PLANTS Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status, such as, state noxious status and wetland indicator values.

Description

General: Pine Family (Pinaceae). Native trees growing to 50 meters tall, the crown long-conic; branches whorled, ascending to slightly to strongly drooping; twigs not pendent, stout, yellow-brown, usually without hair; many small twigs produced on the main trunk and between the main whorls of branches; bark relatively thick, gray-brown, breaking into furrows and rounded ridges, only slightly scaly. Needles are evergreen, borne singly and at right angles from all sides of the twig, 1.6-3 cm long, 4-angled, stiff and sharply spine-tipped, silvery to blue-green. Seed cones are green or violet, ripening pale buff, (5) 6-11 (12) cm long, ellipsoid, pendent, the scales elliptic to diamond-shaped, widest below middle, stiff at the base, the tip flexible, unevenly toothed, and extending 8-10 mm beyond seed-wing impression. The common name is based upon the blue foliage color of some races. Variation within the species: trees with similar color tend to occur in small, local populations, suggesting that color traits are under genetic control. The color variation does not conform to a clinal pattern. Most other variable features in blue spruce (e.g., physiology, early survival, growth rate) similarly do not follow geographical parameters; date of bud set follows a local altitudinal pattern. Besides features of habit, leaf color, and habitat, blue spruce is distinguished from Engelmann spruce by its cones and cone scales that average larger in size, but these characteristics are often partially or completely overlapping. Blue spruce also differs in its glabrous twigs.

Distribution

The native range of blue spruce is the central and southern Rocky Mountains of the USA – in Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. For current distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Web site.

Adaptation

Blue spruce commonly occurs on stream banks in moist canyon bottoms (hence one of its common names, water spruce) but may grow on gentle to steep mountain slopes in Douglas fir or spruce-fir woods up to timberline; at 1800-3000 meters elevation in mid-montane forests. It often grows with subalpine fir, white fir, and Engelmann spruce. It is cultivated on a wide variety of soils, except those that are very moist.

Establishment

Blue spruce begins to produce seed at about 20 years; maximum seed production occurs between 50-150 years. Good cone years occur at intervals of 2-3 years. Seed germination is mostly confined to exposed mineral soil with side shade and overhead light, but natural reproduction is scanty, probably because the light seeds are prevented from coming into contact with mineral soil by the dense herbage, grass, or other ground-cover vegetation that is usually abundant in the habitat of the species. Seedling establishment is probably benefited by moisture availability and shading, which prolong snow and soil moisture in late spring. Blue spruce is a slow-growing tree and some individuals have been reported to live for more than 600 years. Reproduction by layering has not been reported for this species.

Management

Western spruce budworm larvae feed on old needles in late April, then mine developing buds and defoliate new tree growth. Heavy repeated attacks kill the tree. Cultivars, Improved and Selected Materials (and area of origin) These plant materials are readily available from commercial sources. Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil Conservation Service) office for more information. Look in the phone book under ”United States Government.” The Natural Resources

Conservation

Service will be listed under the subheading “Department of Agriculture,” , Use soil moisture sensors to measure the soil moisture of Picea pungens Engelm. f. argentea Beissn..

References

Daubenmire, R. 1972. On the relation between Picea pungens and Picea engelmannii in the Rocky Mountains. Canad. J. Bot. 50:733-742. Fechner, G.H. 1990. Picea pungens. Pp. 238-249, IN R.M. Burns and B.H. Honkala. Silvics of North America. Volume 1. Conifers. USDA Forest Service Agric. Handbook 654, Washington, D.C. <http://willow.ncfes.umn.edu/silvics_manual/Table_of_contents.htm> Taylor, R.J. 1993. Picea. Pp. 369-373, IN Flora of North America, north of Mexico. Vol. 2, Pteridophytes and gymnosperms. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, New York. <http://hua.huh.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/Flora/flora.pl?FLORA_ID=12395>

Plant Traits

Growth Requirements

Cold Stratification RequiredNo
Hedge ToleranceLow
Hedge ToleranceLow
Frost Free Days, Minimum120
Frost Free Days, Minimum120
Fire ToleranceLow
Fire ToleranceLow
Fertility RequirementMedium
Fertility RequirementMedium
Drought ToleranceMedium
Drought ToleranceMedium
Cold Stratification RequiredNo
Temperature, Minimum (°F)-38
CaCO3 ToleranceHigh
CaCO3 ToleranceHigh
Anaerobic ToleranceNone
Anaerobic ToleranceNone
Adapted to Medium Textured SoilsYes
Adapted to Medium Textured SoilsYes
Adapted to Fine Textured SoilsNo
Adapted to Fine Textured SoilsNo
Adapted to Coarse Textured SoilsYes
Adapted to Coarse Textured SoilsYes
Moisture UseMedium
Temperature, Minimum (°F)-38
Shade ToleranceIntermediate
Shade ToleranceIntermediate
Salinity ToleranceLow
Salinity ToleranceLow
Root Depth, Minimum (inches)18
Root Depth, Minimum (inches)18
Precipitation, Minimum20
Precipitation, Minimum20
Precipitation, Maximum45
Precipitation, Maximum45
Planting Density per Acre, Minim300
Planting Density per Acre, Minim300
Planting Density per Acre, Maxim700
Planting Density per Acre, Maxim700
pH, Minimum5.5
pH, Minimum5.5
pH, Maximum7.8
pH, Maximum7.8
Moisture UseMedium


Morphology/Physiology

Active Growth PeriodSpring and Summer
ToxicityNone
ToxicityNone
Shape and OrientationConical
Fire ResistantNo
Foliage TextureMedium
Foliage TextureMedium
Foliage Porosity WinterDense
Foliage Porosity WinterDense
Foliage Porosity SummerDense
Foliage Porosity SummerDense
Foliage ColorGreen
Foliage ColorGray-Green
Flower ConspicuousNo
Flower ConspicuousNo
Flower ColorYellow
Flower ColorYellow
Resprout AbilityNo
Fire ResistantNo
Fall ConspicuousNo
Fall ConspicuousNo
Coppice PotentialNo
Coppice PotentialNo
C:N RatioHigh
C:N RatioHigh
BloatNone
BloatNone
Active Growth PeriodSpring and Summer
Shape and OrientationConical
Fruit/Seed ColorBrown
Resprout AbilityNo
Nitrogen FixationNone
Nitrogen FixationNone
Low Growing GrassNo
Low Growing GrassNo
LifespanLong
LifespanLong
Leaf RetentionYes
Leaf RetentionYes
Known AllelopathNo
Known AllelopathNo
Height, Mature (feet)100.0
Height, Mature (feet)75.0
Fruit/Seed ColorBrown
Fruit/Seed ConspicuousNo
Fruit/Seed ConspicuousNo
Growth FormSingle Stem
Growth FormSingle Stem
Growth RateSlow
Growth RateSlow
Height at 20 Years, Maximum (fee20
Height at 20 Years, Maximum (fee20


Reproduction

Propagated by CuttingsYes
Propagated by SeedNo
Propagated by SeedYes
Propagated by SodNo
Propagated by SodNo
Propagated by SprigsNo
Propagated by SprigsNo
Propagated by TubersNo
Propagated by TubersNo
Fruit/Seed PersistenceNo
Seed per Pound106080
Seed per Pound106080
Seed Spread RateModerate
Seed Spread RateModerate
Seedling VigorLow
Seedling VigorLow
Small GrainNo
Small GrainNo
Vegetative Spread RateNone
Vegetative Spread RateNone
Propagated by CormNo
Propagated by CuttingsYes
Bloom PeriodLate Spring
Bloom PeriodLate Spring
Commercial AvailabilityRoutinely Available
Commercial AvailabilityRoutinely Available
Fruit/Seed AbundanceHigh
Fruit/Seed AbundanceHigh
Fruit/Seed Period BeginSummer
Fruit/Seed Period BeginSummer
Fruit/Seed Period EndFall
Fruit/Seed PersistenceNo
Propagated by Bare RootYes
Propagated by Bare RootYes
Propagated by BulbNo
Propagated by BulbNo
Propagated by ContainerYes
Propagated by ContainerYes
Propagated by CormNo
Fruit/Seed Period EndFall


Suitability/Use

Palatable Browse AnimalLow
Palatable Browse AnimalLow
Palatable Graze AnimalLow
Palatable Graze AnimalLow
Palatable HumanNo
Palatable HumanNo
Post ProductNo
Post ProductYes
Protein PotentialLow
Protein PotentialLow
Pulpwood ProductNo
Pulpwood ProductYes
Veneer ProductNo
Veneer ProductYes
Nursery Stock ProductYes
Nursery Stock ProductYes
Naval Store ProductNo
Naval Store ProductNo
Lumber ProductYes
Lumber ProductNo
Fuelwood ProductMedium
Fuelwood ProductMedium
Fodder ProductNo
Fodder ProductNo
Christmas Tree ProductYes
Christmas Tree ProductYes
Berry/Nut/Seed ProductNo
Berry/Nut/Seed ProductNo

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

<i>Picea pungens</i> Engelm. f. argentea Beissn.

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