Black Spruce Tree

A superior spruce tree that's popular for its dense, pyramidal shape, the Black Spruce Tree is a favorite for its thick, uniform shape and amazing ornamental growth. A cousin of the White Spruce, the Black Spruce shines with its ability to thrive despite poor soil and bad weather.

Latin: Picea mariana

Zones: 2-6

Other common names: Bog Spruce, Swamp Spruce, Shortleaf Black SpruceMature

Height/spread: 30-50 ft high/ 8-12 ft. spread. Slow growth rate (12″ or less per year)

Soil / Climate: shorter needles and smaller and rounder cones than the other spruces, and a preference for wetter lowland areas. Full sun to shade.

Notes: Dense foliage with blue green needles. Small violet colored cones turn to dark brown as they mature.

Wildlife: Mammals: Moose occasionally browse saplings, but white-tailed deer eat it only under starvation conditions. Provides good cover for moose.A major food of snowshoe hares, especially in winter. Red squirrels consume seed from harvested cones. Mice, voles, shrews, and chipmunks eat seeds off the ground.

Birds: Spruce grouse feed entirely on spruce needles in winter. Chickadees, nuthatches, crossbills, grosbeaks, and pine siskin extract seeds from open spruce cones and eat seeds off the ground. It also provides good cover for spruce grouse. In the Lake States, spruce grouse are dependent upon black spruce stands for much of their habitat needs. The ruby-crowned kinglet, magnolia warbler, Cape May warbler, and ovenbird commonly nest in Black Spruce.

1. Planting: Plant your Black Hills Spruce in a spot in your yard that gets at least 4 hours of sun each day, and choose an area with well-drained soil.

To plant, spread 2 inches of organic fertilizer on the ground in an area that is two times as large as the root ball. Till the fertilizer into the ground. Be sure to go slightly deeper than the longest root and continue twice as wide as the canopy. Place the tree in the loose soil and press the soil down until the tree's roots are completely covered.

2. Watering: Water the ground immediately after you plant your tree, but don't oversaturate. Your tree will only need around 20 inches of water each year, so you may not need to ever water your tree unless there is a severe drought.

3. Fertilizing: If you notice stalled growth, add one inch of organic fertilizer under the entire tree canopy each spring to encourage faster growth. If you do, you'll need to water the ground after you apply the fertilizer to ensure it reaches the roots.

4. Pruning: If you do see infested or diseased branches, you can prune them down to the trunk in the fall.

Spring orders:

Orders are scheduled for a climate zone appropriate time (late February for Southern US states, March-June for Northernmost US locations). DELAYS OCCUR if the product is spring harvested and our ground is frozen, or if the order is submitted or modified during the spring shipping season (generally a 2-5 week delay on late orders). Most seasons evergreens cannot be harvested before late March/early April. If specific timing is requested, we will do our best to schedule and ship accordingly, but we will contact the customer for further instruction if the request cannot be met.

Fall orders:

Shipment is weather dependent and will occur as soon as stock is safely dormant. Most seasons evergreens can be harvested and shipped by mid to late September. Early October for a few species such as cedar or hemlock.  Most leafy deciduous species are shipped following harvest in November-December. If your fall order contains both evergreen and deciduous items and customer has not requested otherwise, they will be shipped together when the latest item is safe to harvest.  If specific timing is requested, we will do our best to schedule and ship accordingly, but we will contact the customer for further instruction if the request cannot be met. Pick up orders must be paid in advance.

Late cancellations may be subject to restocking fee.

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