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Blue Spruce (Picea pungens)

[ Trees > Conifers > Spruces . . . ]      Forest Type: Various

Range

Four-sided, blue-green, flexible needles that leave pegs when they fall; reddish brown, gray bark; cones 2-4 inches long; growing in western mountains.

by Michael Kuo

Habitat: Naturally occurring at lower elevations (6,000-9,000 feet) in the northern part of its range, and at higher elevations (8,000-11,000) in the southern Rockies; in pure stands or mixed with other conifers; planted as an ornamental across the continent.

Stature: 80-100 feet high; trunk to 2 feet in diameter; with a dense, conical crown.

Needles: About 1 inch long; blue-green; four-sided; stiff and sharp.

Bark: Fairly thick when mature; furrowed; gray.

Cones: 2-4.5 inches long; scales tough, with eroded tips and edges; persisting one year before falling in fall.


(References consulted)


Frequent Mushroom Associates:

Many montane mycorrhizal mushrooms associate with blue spruce, including various boletes, Russula aeruginea, Russula xerampelina, and others.

 

Picea pungens

Picea pungens

Picea pungens

Picea pungens



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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2010, November). Blue spruce (Picea pungens). Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/trees/picea_pungens.html