Picea abies
You’ve probably admired it at Rockefeller Center in New York City or towering proudly over a snow-covered park.
Maybe you’ve brushed past its familiar scent in a winter wreath or as the centerpiece of a holiday display.
The Norway spruce (Picea abies) is one of those iconic evergreens that seems to be everywhere and for good reason.
Native to the cool forests of northern, central, and eastern Europe, it’s equally at home across North America.
These stately trees have earned their place among the most beloved conifers, gracing both grand landscapes and suburban yards with their classic conical form.
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While they are generally pyramidal giants, often over 100 feet tall, cultivated varieties offer dwarf types perfect for rock gardens, elegant weeping options, and even ground covers.
Whether you’re dreaming of a picturesque privacy screen, a hardy windbreak, or a towering lawn specimen, there’s a Norway spruce for just about every landscape.
And if you’re ready to add this impressive evergreen to your garden, here’s what we’ll cover:
What You’ll Learn
Norway spruce is a conifer that grows natively in Norway and across most of the rest of Europe in cooler regions all the way up to the Arctic.
In the US, that means anywhere in USDA Hardiness Zones 2 to 7, or further south if the summers are cool such as the Pacific Northwest.
In its indigenous range, Norway spruce can grow nearly 200 feet tall, but in the landscape, we’re looking at closer to 60 feet or so.
Still impressive, but much more manageable. It has a pyramidal shape that fills out rapidly as the tree matures.
When young, the branches are upright and they take on an attractive, slightly drooping shape when mature.
The stiff, four-sided needles are arranged spirally and are up to one inch long. When the cones develop, they are pendulous and green to violet.
As they age, they take on a brown or silvery hue and can be up to six inches long. The male pollen cones are pinkish red.
Quick Look
Common name(s): Norway or European spruce
Plant type: Evergreen conifer
Hardiness (USDA Zone): 2-7
Native to: Europe
Bloom time / season: Evergreen
Exposure: Full sun
Soil type: Loam, sandy loam, well-draining
Soil pH: 5.5–7.0, slightly acidic to neutral
Time to maturity: 50+ years
Mature size: Up to 200 feet (smaller cultivars available)
Best uses: Windbreak, screen, specimen tree, woodland, meadow
Taxonomy
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Picea
Species: Abies
Whether you want to create a screen or plant a stately specimen in your landscape, let’s discuss how to grow these plants.
How to Grow
One important consideration when planting is the root structure.
Norway spruce has shallow roots that like to spread out so you don’t want to grow the tree anywhere near sidewalks and driveways.
When they’re young, trees can grow up to three feet in a single year, but they slow down a little as they age.
Climate
Norway spruce is native to cold regions, it doesn’t do well in heat and humidity.
The tree can handle brief periods above 90°F, but ideally needs daytime highs of between 65 and 75°F.
On the other side, the trees can survive to -40°F and even below.
Light
Most large landscape trees need full sun. They will eventually grow taller than other plants around them in any case, so put your Norway spruce in a spot that receives six or more hours of direct light per day.
It’s totally fine if young specimens are planted in partial sun, which means four to six hours of direct light. They’ll eventually stretch up into the full sun exposure they need.
There are many cultivars that will tolerate a bit of shade, so if you have a darker spot, look for one of those.
Soil
Norway spruce prefers to grow in loamy, sandy, slightly acidic soil with good drainage. A pH of 5.5 to 7.0 is ideal.
That said, this tree is one adaptable plant. It will grow in some clay, slightly alkaline soil, or occasionally wet soil. If you live near the coast, a moderate amount of salty air is fine, too.
Water
When a large Norway spruce is established, you don’t need to worry about watering unless there is an extended drought.
For younger or dwarf specimens, you want to give the plants about an inch of water per week if the rain isn’t providing it.
Use a rain gauge to establish how much rain your garden is receiving and if it’s less than an inch a week, you’ll need to step in with irrigation.
Fertilizing
You should test your soil before you embark on any fertilizing regime. That way, you can determine what nutrients, if any, are lacking in the soil in your backyard.
It’s a waste of money and can be bad for the environment if you add chemicals to the soil when your plant doesn’t need them.
You can contact your local extension office to see if they conduct soil tests or simply purchase a kit online and do it yourself.
When you receive the results, you’ll know exactly how to amend the soil.
In the absence of a soil test, you can fertilize your Norway spruce in the spring and late summer with an all-purpose food with an NPK of 9-9-9, 11-11-11, or similar.
Cultivars to Select
These trees naturally hybridize with other spruces, particularly Siberian spruce, and you’ll find lots of hybrid cultivars on the market.
If you want to grow the species plant, you can find it available in a variety of sizes at Fast Growing Trees.
The vast majority of cultivars have been bred to be much smaller than the species, so if it’s size you’re going for, stick with the original.
Otherwise, here are a few worthwhile options:
Acrocona
‘Acrocona’ is one of my favorite Norway spruce cultivars.
Not only can the tree tolerate partial shade, but it looks fantastic when the young lime green needles are contrasted against the pinkish-purple cones.
When the cones are mature, they turn tan and the older needles are dark green.
The tree is upright with a drooping shape to the branches. It grows up to 20 feet tall, but it takes years to get there.
If you’d like to grab one for your yard, Maple Ridge Nursery carries ‘Acrocona’ in one- and three-gallon containers.
Bird’s Nest
Bird’s nest spruce aka ‘Nidiformis’ is a popular option as it’s slow growing and will take decades to reach its eventual eight-foot-tall by 12-foot-wide mature size.
The foliage grows in a dense globe-shape with long, gray-green needles. It will eventually develop a small depression in the center, which is why it’s known as “bird’s nest.”
Easygoing with a big impact, this cultivar is definitely an option worth considering. You can find plants available in #1, #2, or #5 containers at Nature Hills Nursery.
Cupressina
If you’re looking for a columnar Norway spruce, ‘Cupressina’ fits the bill. This cultivar matures to 30 feet tall and just six feet wide.
It’s perfect for areas with lots of heavy snow.
While columnar arborvitae might experience broken or bent branches, ‘Cupressina’ will stand strong under the weight of the snow.
You can find this columnar stunner available at Fast Growing Trees.
Gregoryana Parsonii
Many dwarf Norway spruces have mounding or low-growing forms. But ‘Gregoryana Parsonii’ looks like a miniature tree.
It has an irregular pyramidal shape and can grow to about 10 feet tall and eight feet wide at most. It takes years to reach that size, though, and will probably be half that in a decade.
This uncommon option is available at Maple Ridge Nursery.
Little Gem
‘Little Gem’ is just that. It has a mounding shape and stays petite at just three feet wide and two feet tall, though it can grow about twice as large in ideal conditions.
The deep green color and short needles makes it a gem in any rock, Japanese, cottage, or formal garden. It’s a low-maintenance bit of texture and color.
You can find ‘Little Gem’ plants available at Nature Hills Nursery.
Pendula
‘Pendula’ aka weeping spruce is a sight to behold. This variety grows up to 15 feet tall and about the same wide, with long, pendulous branches.
You can train it upright for a more weeping form or let it spread wide and low.
You can find weeping spruce available at Fast Growing Trees.
Pumila
‘Pumila’ is a little cutie, often just called dwarf Norway spruce. This cultivar grows up to four feet tall and five feet wide with a beautifully rounded form.
It requires no maintenance to keep its petite, compact shape. If you need an accent for a small spot, this one is ideal.
You can find plants available at Nature Hills Nursery.
Maintenance
A mature Norway spruce branch can be a foot or more in diameter. They’re big!
You don’t want to mess with them unless absolutely necessary to remove dead, dying, diseased, or deformed growth.
You can remove young, small branches if you want to provide some shape, especially if you are growing a weeping type or you want to keep yours petite.
Propagation
It’s difficult to start a Norway spruce from seed and it won’t go true if you have collected seeds from a hybrid.
Plus, only cones on trees that are several decades old tend to produce seedlings successfully.
If you want to try growing from seed, we have a guide to propagating pine trees from seed that will cover the entire process.
If you want to reproduce a Norway spruce you love, you can take cuttings.
From Cuttings
Take cuttings from young growth that is still green and pliable, avoiding hard, thick wood.
- In the early to late summer, cut a section about six inches long and strip the needles off the bottom third. Take twice as many cuttings as you need, because not all will take.
- Prepare containers that are four inches or larger and fill them with potting soil.
- Right before planting, re-cut the base of the cutting at an angle and dip the end into powdered rooting hormone.
- Poke a hole in the soil and insert the cutting about an inch deep. Firm the soil around the cutting so it stays upright.
- Set the cutting outside in a spot that receives about six hours of direct light where it will remain for at least a year.
- Keep the soil evenly moist like a well wrung-out sponge but not soggy while you wait for the cutting to root – which can take up to a year.
- That means letting it stay out over the winter months and, hopefully, by the following spring, there will be new growth and roots.
You can give the cutting a gentle tug if you want to be sure roots have developed. Then, transplant into the garden as described below.
Transplanting
To transplant a potted Norway spruce from the nursery or one you started from a cutting, dig a hole that is twice as wide and just a bit deeper than the growing container.
Remove the plant from its growing pot and gently loosen up the roots so they grow outwards rather than back into themselves.
Set the root ball in the hole and backfill with soil. Don’t bury the plant any deeper than it was in its original container. Water well and add more soil if it settles.
Managing Pests and Disease
A healthy Norway spruce is much less likely to suffer problems from pests or diseases than one that is stressed.
With appropriate spacing, water, and light, there are only a few issues you’ll need to worry about.
Pests
Most established specimens grown in appropriate conditions should be able to shrug off some pest feeding unless it ends up being a particularly large infestation.
Here are the most common ones to watch for:
Aphids
There are few plants that aren’t visited by aphids. For the most part, I don’t find that they’re much of a problem unless they build up into large numbers.
These tiny sap-sucking insects feed on the tree and produce honeydew, a sweet substance that can attract sooty mold.
Learn how to identify and deal with aphids here.
Bagworms
Bagworms are mostly an ornamental issue, though they can look pretty nasty.
These caterpillars are moth larvae that form “bags” out of silk webbing, leaving your tree looking like it’s covered in giant spider sacks.
You can sweep them out, use a pesticide that contains Bacillus thuringiensis, or just ignore them. They won’t usually harm your tree.
Gall Adelgids
Eastern spruce gall adelgids (Adelges abietis) and Cooley spruce gall adelgids (Adelges cooleyi) are both aphid-like insects that cause galls to develop on the tree.
They’re common on spruces, but they also prefer Douglas firs to complete their lifecycle, so they’re only common in areas that have both.
When they feed, two to four-inch long cucumber-shaped growths develop in the spring.
Luckily, the damage is usually minor. It can cause some slowed growth and distortion, especially on young specimens but infestations usually only happen every few years so the tree has time to recover.
If you want to try to get rid of them, you’ll need to do so in the spring before the galls develop. Spray your tree with insecticidal soap or a pesticide that contains pyrethrins.
Spider Mites
Spider mites are the worst pest problem on Norway spruces. They love hot, dry weather and when they have the conditions they like, they can quickly get out of control.
Often, you won’t realize that there’s a problem until you see the needles turning yellow and falling off the tree.
If you look closely, you can sometimes see the teeny tiny critters scuttling along the needles and bark, but mostly you’ll likely only see the fine webbing.
If you identify spider mites and your tree is losing needles, you’ll need to treat the problem.
Learn how to treat a spider mite infestation here.
Disease
With pests out of the way, let’s talk about diseases next.
Cytospora Canker
Cytospora canker is a fungal disease caused by Leucostoma kunzei. It’s most common in spruces that are damaged, stressed, or infested with pests.
As the disease develops, large sunken cankers form and these can girdle and kill entire branches.
You’ll typically see random dead branches covered in yellow, brown, or purple needles and usually lots of resin. During wet weather, spores develop and spread the disease further.
While this disease won’t usually kill your tree, it will make it look very ugly.
To control it, you’ll need to prune off any symptomatic branches and keep doing so every year until there aren’t any.
Needle Cast
Needle cast, caused by fungi in the Rhizosphaera genus, is more common on blue spruces, but it can also impact Norway spruces, particularly those that are stressed.
Patches of needles will turn brown or purple on the lower, inner branches. If you look closely, you might see small black spores on the infected needles.
To treat needle cast, remove the infected branches and then spray the tree with copper fungicide.
Copper won’t eliminate an existing infection but it stops new ones from developing.
You can find Bonide copper fungicide available at Arbico Organics. Spray the tree every three weeks throughout the spring and summer.
Rust
Spruce needle rust is a disease that causes young needles to turn yellow with small rusty brown patches.
It’s caused by fungi in the Chrysomyxa genus and when a tree is heavily infected, it will look somewhat pink. The infected needles will drop from the tree in the fall.
Though it’s ugly, it doesn’t really harm the tree and Norway spruces are rarely infected.
It doesn’t require treatment unless you have nearby blue, black, or white spruces, which are susceptible.
In that case, treat these other species preventatively with a copper spray.
Bring a Bit of Norway to Your Garden
Properly cared for, these trees outlive you, your kids, and many more generations! Norway spruce delivers dependable beauty and evergreen interest while being hardy and adaptable.
Are you growing Norway spruce? Let us know in the comments section below and feel free to share a picture!
And to learn more about growing conifers in your landscape, check out these guides next:
