Norway Spruce

(Picea abies)

Date Planted: October 2000

Family: Pinaceae

Hardiness: Hardy in the Gorham, ME area; Zone 3b-7

Mature Dimensions: 40 to 60 feet tall with a 20 to 30 foot width

Habit: Gracefully pyramidal with hanging branchlets at maturity

Bark: Grayish brown, scaly and flaking

Buds: Reddish brown with broadly-tipped scales; ¼ inch in length and rosette shaped

Leaves/Needles: Upper needles overlap and are pointing forward; lower needles spread left to right and expose the stem. Dark green needles are ½ -1 inch in length and tips are bluntly pointed

Flowers: Monoecious; male flowers are few and axillary, females are terminal, spread over the crown of the tree and are a reddish pink color

Fruit: Cylindrical cones 4-6 inches in length are purplish green in youth and light brown at maturity; seeds are 1/6th inch long and black with a light brown wing ½ inch wide

Pests/Diseases: Spruce budworm, spruce gall aphid and various borers

Reference Pages: Dirr M. 1998. Manual of Woody Landscape Plants. Stipes Publishing Co., Champaign, IL.