Colorado spruce Picea pungens Glauca, h of cm 30-50

Colorado spruce (Latin Picea pungens) — evergreen coniferous tree of family Pine. In nature grows in mountain valleys along the rivers and streams in North America. Grows to 25-30 meters in height, diameter of trunk reaches 1,5 meters. Color of needles varies from glaucous-green to bright blue, length of needles - 2-3 cm. Reddish young cones, mature - light brown, 5-10 cm long.

The Colorado spruce - tree long-liver, life expectancy makes from 400 to 600 years. This beautiful coniferous tree with cone-shaped krone is symbol of states Utah and Colorado.

Types of Colorado spruce

• Colorado spruce (Picea pungens f. glauca) - so are called the wild-growing seedlings of fir-tree or seedlings which are grown up in cultural conditions, but not selektirovanny. The needles of these trees have more or less bluish shade. High-quality fir-trees are called Glauca.
• Colorado spruce gray (Picea pungens Glauca) - other names of this high-quality fir-tree: Glauca, Glauka, Silvery. The needles of trees keep bluish-green coloring within year, hvoinka are covered with bloom which gives them bluish and gray color. Length hvoinok of 2-3 cm, the cone light brown, Adult trees 6-10 cm long reach 20 m in height, diameter of krone - 6-8 m. The krone is symmetric, cone-shaped. The annual gain makes in height - 30-40 cm, width - 10-15 cm. It is steady against smoke in city conditions, is frost-resistant, drought-resistant.
• Glauk Globoz's (Picea pungens Glauca globosa) fir-tree - the dwarfish form of Colorado spruce called also as Grey Spherical. Height of adult tree - to 1 m, diameter - to 1,5 m. The krone, uneven and friable at young plants, in process of growing becomes more dense. The needles are dense, about 1 cm long, white-blue color. This species of fir-tree is recommended for landing in stony gardens, groups or poodinochno on lawn in park, near houses.
• Fir-tree silvery Argentea (Picea pungens Argentea) - the straight-stemmed tree reaching height of 30-40 m with cone-shaped krone. The young needles have gentle-green color with whitish shade, the wax raid of more adult needles gains silver-white color. The fir-tree is widely used in gardening of parks, squares, lands near office buildings. It is drought-resistant, winter-hardy and steady against air pollution.
• Blue spruce Oldenburg (Picea pungensOldenburg) - the grade is removed in Germany. The adult tree reaches in height of 10-15 m, sometimes 20 m, diameter of krone - 5-7 m. Annual gain - 30-35 cm in height and 15 cm in width. Krone of conical shape. The needles are rigid, prickly, blue color. It is frost-resistant, photophilous, prefers chernozems and loams without overmoistening. It is applied in single and group landings.

Purchase of saplings. At the choice of saplings it is necessary to pay attention to condition of root system. Roots have to be in earth lump, are not opened at all. The grade of fir-tree has to be adapted for climate of the place of landing.

Location and landing. At the choice of the place for landing consider the fact that the fir-tree does not suffer neighbors, and the shadow from wide branches can slow down development of other plants.

Landing is usually made in the spring, at the end of April or in the fall since the beginning of September. The fir-tree prefers loamy and sandy loam soils.

At group landing between fir-trees 2-3 meters, depth of holes - 50-70 cm have to make distance. The fir-tree does not love close ground waters therefore recommend to fill in hole drainage layer (15-20 cm) from beaten red brick and sand. When landing the hole is filled with soil substrate from the cespitose, sheet earth, peat and sand in the ratio 2:2:1:1. For the best development of plant sometimes add 100 g of nitroammofoska to soil substrate.

In landing time it is necessary to track that the root neck was at the level of the soil. After landing do hole, water, landing circle (surface around trunk) mulch peat layer 5-7 cm. Afterwards when loosening peat is mixed with the earth.