Picea pungens 'Foxtail' - Blue Spruce

Height of the seedling 2 0-40 cm a  

   

Picea pungens , commonly called Colorado spruce (also blue spruce), is a medium to large, narrow, pyramidal conifer that branches horizontally to the ground. It typically grows 70-120cm tall in cultivation. It is native to the Central Rocky Mountains from southern Montana and eastern Idaho south to New Mexico, where it typically grows in moist places at elevations of 6,000 to 11,000 feet. Stiff, bristly, quadrangular, green-blue-green to silver-blue needles (up to 4 cm) point outward from the branches in all directions. The cylindrical light brown cones (up to 10 cm long) have flexible scales. Dark gray bark on old trees. From a horticultural perspective, blue or silver-blue seedlings are generally more desirable than green ones.

The genus name is said to be derived from the Latin word pix , meaning "pitch", referring to the sticky resin typically found in spruce bark.

The specific epithet means pointed in relation to needles.

'Foxtail' is known for the foxtail appearance of its new branches (needles at the tips of the branches are shorter than those at the base). This is a medium-sized, dense, wide upright, pyramidal, evergreen conifer with horizontal branching. It has a moderate growth rate, 30cm per year, and typically grows 70-120cm tall when cultivated. It has attractive blue-green needles and oval, elongated cones with wavy scales. Synonym for P. pungens 'Iseli Foxtail'.