Norway spruce: description, varieties, selection, cultivation

Spruce is a quite common plant in the forests of Russia. However, the townspeople know very little about him. It's time to learn more about this tree.

Common spruce in Latin has the botanical name Picea abies. Since the species is widespread, there is no fear that it will become extinct. An alternative name is European spruce. This species belongs to the pine family and grows in the middle zone of the Russian Federation. Picea abies is widely used in landscaping works in cities, but you can see it both in summer cottages and near country cottages.

Spruce timber is popular in the woodworking industry. Immature cones are one of the types of medicinal raw materials in traditional medicine. Common spruce grows in the northeastern regions of Europe, where it forms vast forests (spruce forests).

The species can survive even in severely unfavorable conditions. A typical way of adaptation is the formation of dwarf thickets. Soils can be different in texture, but its fertility is especially important. It is recommended to choose a location that is humidified by running water. At the same time, waterlogging and stagnation of water in general are very dangerous.

Common spruces tolerate drought and frost quite well. However, spring frosts pose a serious threat to her. The maximum fixed lifespan of spruce trees is 468 years. But specimens over 300 years old are extremely rare. In the mixed forest zone, their maximum age ranges from 120 to 150 years.

Since the root system of the tree is located near the surface, it is not uncommon for trees to fall from strong winds. It is characterized by a gray bark, which gradually flakes off. The leaves are replaced by four-sided needles arranged in a spiral. The size of the needles is 0.01-0.025 m. The lifespan of a needle can reach 6 years or more.

In the first 10-15 years of life, an ordinary spruce has a taproot. Later, it turns into a superficial one, as the main part of the root system dies off. Young spruce shoots at first grow upward and practically do not form branches. When the branches do appear, they will be at right angles to the trunk. In most cases, the crown diameter reaches 4-5 m.

Variety "Virgata" is decorative. The tree reaches a height of 6-8 m, by the age of 15, the crown diameter will be from 3 to 4 m. The elongated branches touch the ground itself and do not branch too much. The growth of the trunk upwards per year reaches 0.4 m under favorable conditions. Thick needles are up to 0.02 m long.

The ideal soil is sandy loam and acidic loam. Low trees will delight you with large, but rarely growing cones.

Initially, the fruit has a transitional color from green to purple.As it matures, it acquires a brownish tone. According to winter hardiness "Virgata" belongs to the 4th class. She needs special preparation for the cold. The recommended drainage thickness is from 0.15 to 0.2 m.

"Aurea" differs from the previous variety in its rather slow growth. These spruces have a loose, not too regular crown. The highest trunk height reaches 15 m, but only occasionally; in most specimens it will be about 12 m.Only the oldest trees reach this condition, and by the age of 30, the height of 6-8 m is the norm.Flowering needles have a golden color, in the summer months they are green, and when the cold weather approaches, they acquire a dark green color ...

However, severe cold is a problem for him. Having survived the harsh winter, the spruce will darken. You can cut Aurea without any fear.

If you need a relatively high grade, then you should take a closer look at the Columnaris spruce. An adult tree can grow up to 12-15 m. It is crowned with a graceful crown in the form of a narrow column. The silhouette of the barrel remains clear. The largest crown diameter does not exceed 1.5 m.

Strongly developed and rather short branches go down, like a weeping willow. Until the end of active growth, Columnaris will show uneven branching. The higher the shoot, the less it splits. But in adulthood, this deficiency is smoothed out and the exposure of the apex disappears. The needles of 0.015-0.02 m are painted in a dark green tone and grow very densely.

The renovation of square needles takes 6 to 12 years. Young needles appear lighter until a few months after their appearance. "Columnaris" is distinguished by its light-loving nature and practically does not tolerate partial shade.

Ate "Maxwelli" look extremely original. Like any other bonsai, they grow very slowly. The highest height in the conditions of Russia is only 1-1.5 m. The needles are relatively sharp and colored in a light green tone, occasionally with a yellowish tint. The plant is excellent for cultivation in rock gardens. It can also be used to decorate backyard areas. There are quite a few branches on the tree, they are very durable.

Another dwarf variety is Pygmy. The maximum height of such spruces is limited to 1 m, the width is no more than 2-3 m. The shoots are collected in a crown resembling a wide cone, the branches close tightly together.

Pigmies do not have bumps. The soil must not be compacted. Experienced gardeners note that this plant is extremely resistant to cold weather. It is advised to use it in rock gardens, ridges, conifers and collection gardens.

Lorelei spruce forms creeping or hanging branches. The width of the plant at the age of 10 reaches 1.5 m. If the shoots are not tied up, they will creep along the ground. It is advised to grow a culture in partial shade, and preferably in the sun. The height of the standard spruce is determined by the place where the inoculation was made.

It is appropriate to complete the review on the "Konika" variety. This spruce forms a miniature trunk covered with fluffy branches. The time of her life in one place reaches 500 years. This spruce can be gray and white. Gray "Konika" is considered optimal for a parterre and a garden of stones.

The choice of ordinary spruce cannot be reduced only to acquaintance with the descriptions of varieties. Unconditional preference in domestic conditions should be given to the most winter-hardy varieties. This aspect is less important when choosing dwarf forms, which are usually hidden by snow in winter.

Additionally, you should consider:

• will it be possible to provide the plant with the necessary lighting and moisture;

• how high are the requirements for the fertile properties of the soil;

• how the tree will look in a certain place and under certain lighting;

• what color of needles is most preferable;

• is fast growth important;

• how tall the tree should be.

Common spruce can grow even on relatively poor organic soils, on clay and sand. The tree is indifferent to the light, you can plant it even on a shaded slope. But there is another danger - in poor environmental conditions, Christmas trees suffer a lot. Standard spruce farming involves the use of light drainage. The creation of a drainage layer of brick, crushed stone, expanded clay, and so on is impractical.

When a year has passed, it is transplanted into separate pots. Already in these pots, the use of heavy drainage is encouraged. Initially, the plants are advised to be planted in the drainage from the needles. The sowing scheme for common spruces is quite simple.

The depth of the excavations is 0.5-0.7 m. If the ground is very dense, heavy drainage is indispensable. The best option is a mixture of crushed stone or broken brick with sand 0.15-0.2 m thick. The seedling should be placed in the hole carefully, but deviations from the vertical should be excluded. It is necessary to fill up the root of the planted tree, but it cannot be tamped.

Additional mulching of the vicinity of the root with a thin layer of peat is recommended. This layer is 0.05-0.07 m and should be created in the first two years after planting. Experts advise placing nitroammofosku in the soil mixture when planting.

Additional irrigation of the spruce will be required when there is no rain for a long time. In hot periods, it is required. It's easy to check whether it's time to water the tree: you need to squeeze a clod of earth in your hand and see if it crumbles. It is necessary to pour water strictly around the root ball within a radius of 0.2-0.3 m from the trunk. Each tree should have 10-12 liters of water.

It is forbidden to feed ordinary spruce with manure. It is much more correct to use mineral mixtures. Among them, however, those that contain a significant amount of nitrogen are unsuitable. Because of it, the growth of shoots before the onset of cold weather makes it impossible to prepare for winter.

If you don't want to cook it on your own, you need to use vermicompost, which is sold in any specialized store. Of other mixtures, it is worth paying attention to formulations containing an easily absorbed form of calcium.

For cutting ordinary spruce, you need to use a pruner or a garden saw. Particular attention should be paid to sanitizing the sections after performing this procedure. As the tree grows, it is pruned more and more often. Plants up to 3-4 years old are pinched instead of pruning. Pruning is advised in the last third of the summer. Sometimes it is carried out in the fall, if there is a firm belief that the incisions will heal before the cold weather arrives.

You can turn the cone into a ball by trimming the apical shoots. Eliminate the drying of the lower shoots will help remove the upward growing shoots. At a young age, the spruce is processed with garden shears. Mature plants are trimmed with a brush cutter.

A conversation about caring for an ordinary spruce cannot pass by the answer to the question of what to do if the tree on the trunk burns in the sun. Helping ornamental crops is especially important in early spring. Spraying branches from a spray bottle will help to cope with the problem. For better results, the ground under the trees is watered with clean water or weak mineral solutions. Sometimes the Christmas trees are covered up to half the height with lutrasil (leaving it open from the bottom) or burlap.

Oil ailments can be infectious, but other problems are also common. To cope with the fungus, you cannot plant trees very densely and allow a lack of light. Schütte is suppressed by treatment with Quadris or Falcon fungicides. There should be 14 days between treatments.

Fighting fusarium is much harder. In addition to using fungicides, you will have to deal with stem injection, disinfection of the earth. To exclude mistakes, it is worth consulting with specialists every time.

Fungal necrosis lends itself to systematic treatment with fungicides. The whole diseased tree will have to be processed with them. It is also necessary to use root formation stimulants.

In the last days of November, when the cold is approaching, you need to thoroughly "charge" the spruce with moisture. To do this, it is watered with 20 liters of water (if the plant reaches 1 m). Taller trees will need 30-50 liters of water. Ephedra with a topiary haircut are sheltered as thoroughly as possible from snow. In the first month of autumn, the plant is fed with a phosphorus-potassium mixture to strengthen the roots and branches.

The best mulch is considered to be tree bark.

The shoots are alternately raised and swayed, having previously wrapped with soft cloth. In case of freezing rain, it is worth stocking up on props, and stretch marks will save you from the stormy wind.

For cultivation of common spruce, it is recommended to use seeds that are harvested under any adult plant. For this, a few cones are enough, which are dried in the heat. You do not need to peel or break the cones, because with careful handling, they will open themselves. It is recommended to treat the planting material with a solution of potassium permanganate. The ideal substrate, according to professionals, is river sand, but it must be calcined.

1 seed is placed in a container with soil and buried by 0.01-0.03 m. Then the container is placed in the refrigerator or placed in a cold corner in the house. Due to stratification, seed germination is accelerated. Planting material should be kept in the cold for about 90 days.

Sowing is recommended in October or November. The seeds will then be stratified by the very beginning of the spring season. Sowing is sometimes carried out in a film greenhouse. The substrate is prepared from milled, slightly decomposed peat. To separate full-weight seeds from empty ones, they are soaked for 24 hours.

Not all specimens of common spruce are highly decorative. Landscape designers advise growing this plant along with:

• fir;

• birch;

• larch;

• ash;

• maple;

• narrow-leaved sucker.

This photo clearly shows how pleasant a single common spruce is when placed in the foreground.

And here it is shown what an unusual appearance the Inversa variety has in a tub.

However, even rows of trees growing in the garden can be no less beautiful.

The tallest plants should be used as a tapeworm. It is especially good if they have dark needles.

For common spruce, see below.