Picea pungens

Picea pungens is a unique variety of spruce native to mountainous regions of North America.

It reaches up to 30 meters in height.

The needles are pointed, stiff, very prickly, and arranged perpendicular to the branches, ranging in color from blue-green to silvery-blue.

It blooms in spring, producing small male (yellowish) and female (reddish-brown or greenish) flowers. After pollination, these flowers develop into large, cylindrical cones that mature and release seeds the following summer.

The cones are pendulous, light brown, and 8-10 cm long. Their scales are small, soft, and have distinctly truncated and unevenly serrated tops.

Picea pungens grows well in sandy, well-drained, and slightly acidic to neutral soils. It prefers a sunny location.