Common Name: Colorado Blue Spruce
Scientific Name: Picea pungens
Other Names:
Leaf: Needles evergreen, stiff, 16-30 mm long, very sharp-pointed, silvery to bluish green, 4-sided (cross-section); spreading out all around the twig, curved forward.
Flower: Pollen cones.
Fruit: Seed cones cylindrical with tapered tip, 6-12 cm long; scales diamond-shaped, chestnut-brown, thin, flexible; tip of the cone scale is unevenly toothed.
Twig: Twigs very stout, shiny yellowish-brown and hairless; buds rounded to blunt-pointed, 10mm long.
Bark: Mature bark gray-brown, flaky, breaking into furrows and rounded ridges.
Wood: Light, straight-grained, soft, moderately strong, resilient, pale; no distinct heartwood.
Facts About This Tree:
1. Colorado Blue Spruce is a medium-sized tree native to the Rocky Mountains region of the U.S. It can live up to 600 years, and grow up to 30m tall and 90cm in trunk diameter.
2. Colorado Blue Spruce can be easily distinguished from other spruces by looking at the tip of the cone scale (loose-fitting, diamond-shaped with jagged tip).
3. Because of its cold hardiness, symmetrical pyramidal form, and waxy blue foliage, Colorado Blue Spruce is widely used for ornamental and landscaping purposes. However, it 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.
Lat, Long: 43.7834237, -79.5921103
Diameter (DBH): 21.5 cm
Last Year Modified: 2015
Carbon Stored in this Tree: 81.79 kg of C
Equivalent CO2: 299.85 kg of C
Find more trees in Woodbridge.
Reference
1. Farrar, J. L. 2007. Trees in Canada. ON. Canadian Forest Service.
2. G. Nesom, G. Guala. 2005. Plant Guide – Blue Spruce. U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service. Retrieved on Sept. 2014 from http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_pipu.pdf
3. Photo Credit: Daniel J. Kim; The East Courtyard, Stratford General Hospital, Stratford Ontario_2688 by Robert Taylor via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/8jFBiA; Colorado Blue Spruce Young Cones by Joe Thomissen via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/9ymEtn; blue spruce by liz west via Flickr – https://flic.kr/p/4S8ANC
Copyright 2015 Association for Canadian Educational Resources
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