Engelman's spruce is a beautiful coniferous plant with a conical crown and a silvery or gray-green color. She comes from North America, and came to Europe in the second half of the nineteenth century. There are several varieties of this tree, which differ in size, shade and shape.
Engelman spruce: a beautiful tree with extraordinary needles
Brief information about the variety
- Colour: needles are silvery, blue, gray-green;
- Height: 30-50 m;
- Crown width: 90 cm;
- In which regions is it growing: Central, Chernozem, Volga region, North-West, South Siberia;
- Landing features: in a sunny place, in partial shade, in the shade;
- Immunity: middle;
- Life span: up to 500 years and more.
Popular varieties
The most interesting decorative varieties include:
- Weeping - gray-bluish spruce with drooping main branches;
- Glauka is a fast growing variety with a beautiful blue or bluish color;
- Silver - differs in spectacular grayish-silver needles;
- Small coniferous - a dwarf herringbone with a spherical shape and small needles;
- Bush Lace is a spruce of a deep azure-gray shade with branches raised at the base and lowered tips;
- Blue Magu is an original variety, the young growth of which is almost blue in color and hangs beautifully from the branches.
General description
In most cases, the Engelmann spruce is a tall tree (although dwarf varieties also exist). Its height can reach 30-50 m, and its diameter is 100 cm.
Herringbone has a dense cone-shaped crown. Drooping branches often grow symmetrically, but not always. The bark is thin, fissured, bright brown.
The needles are hard, prickly, up to 30 mm long. Color - from gray-green to gray-silver. Elongated oval buds reach 5-7 cm. At first they are purple in color, and eventually turn brown.
Growing regions
Engelmann's herringbone is highly resistant to cold weather. It can be grown in hardiness zone 2b and warmer.
In Russia, these conditions are met by the entire middle zone (Chernozem, Central, Volga, North-West) and South Siberia. The tree tolerates temperatures up to -45 ° C quite adequately.
Landing
The tree can withstand temperatures down to minus 45 degrees
To avoid drying out the roots, it is better to purchase a seedling with a closed root system.
The branches of the plant should be elastic, and the needles should be fresh and firmly seated, with the growth of the current year.
When purchasing, make sure that the barrel is free of any damage or foreign stains.
Landing place
The herringbone grows well in sunny and shaded places, but in the first case, the color of the needles is brighter. The best option would be light partial shade - not in the open sun, but not in full shade.
When planting a tall variety, it is necessary to provide it with free space - at least 10-15 m to other trees.
The culture loves moderately moist soils with a neutral reaction, but in general it is not too picky.
Landing technology
The planting hole should be 1.5-2 times larger than the earthen lump.
On dense soils, drainage from sand or broken brick will be needed, so the depth of the hole is made at least 70-80 cm.The removed garden soil is mixed with turf (in equal proportions), peat, sand are added, if necessary, complex fertilizers for conifers.
Often, the containerized seedling is already provided with sustained release nutrients.
The plant is placed in a planting pit, watered and covered with the first layer of the substrate. The soil is thoroughly tamped and re-moistened for better adhesion to the roots.
When the earth settles, more soil mixture is added, leaving the root collar at ground level. The tree trunk circle is mulched with peat, needles or sawdust.
Care
Caring for Engelman's Christmas tree does not require special skills or effort, therefore it is available even to novice gardeners.
In addition to basic procedures, young seedlings at first need light shading. They should be especially protected from the sun in late February and early spring.
Watering
If precipitation falls regularly, adult trees may not be watered at all, and young trees may be moistened as needed, focusing on the condition of the soil.
In dry periods, watering should be done 2-3 times a week, supplementing them with evening sprinkling of the crown.
The required volume of water depends on the age of the plant - usually 12 liters per 1 m of growth are used, distributing moisture over the entire area of the trunk circle.
Top dressing
It is recommended to fertilize spruce once a year.
The tree is fertilized in early spring using special complexes for conifers.
In principle, one mineral feeding per season is enough for a tree. Additional nutrition can be provided by peat or compost decomposed in the trunk circle.
Mulching and loosening
The spruce root system is located close to the surface, so when loosening and weeding, you should not go deeper than 7 cm.
When growing this species, it is very useful to mulch the trunk circle. This reduces moisture evaporation and the number of weeds, improves oxygen access, and facilitates maintenance.
Peat chips, dry leaves, sawdust, crushed bark, chips, needles are used as mulch.
Pruning
Spruce pruning is done in early spring. At the same time, dry twigs and damaged shoots are removed, and the crown itself is slightly thinned out (if necessary).
A shaping haircut for the herringbone is not necessary, but densely located branches allow it to be carried out.
Preparing for winter
Due to their high frost resistance, mature trees do not need to be covered in winter.
Young seedlings should be covered with spruce branches so that the snow does not deform the crown. A layer of peat chips can be poured into the trunk circle for insulation.
Reproduction
The herringbone is propagated by seeds and vegetatively, as well as by grafting.
Seed propagation is possible without stratification. Sowing is done in April, pre-soaking the seeds for a day and separating the full ones from the empty ones (floating ones).
A suitable seed is treated with manganese and sown in a nutritious substrate, and mulched on top. The box is placed in a greenhouse, periodically moistening, feeding and airing the seedlings.
Cuttings are also carried out in the second month of spring, cutting off twigs with a "heel" 15-20 cm long. The cuttings are placed in Kornevin's solution, and then deepened into a soil mixture (earth with peat) and placed in a greenhouse.
In addition, the tree is propagated by grafting, although not as often. Cuttings are grafted onto conifers of local origin, from April to mid-June.
Diseases and pests
An excess of moisture can make a tree sick
Potentially threatening this type of disease: shute, fusarium, root rot, ulcerative cancer, vertun, rust on cones.
To avoid diseases, the ephedra needs careful prevention: regular examinations and treatment with medicinal preparations.
Many fungi occur when waterlogged, so the tree should not be planted in places where groundwater is close.
Among insects, the greatest damage to the tree is caused by the leafworm, aphids and spider mites. When they appear, the needles need to be washed with soapy water with the addition of medical alcohol (10 ml per 1 liter).
It is better to cut off especially affected branches, and in serious cases - to carry out a series of sprays with insecticides and acaricides.
Tree in landscape design
There are many ways to use this tree in landscape design.
- It is very effective as a tapeworm.
- often planted in private plots, and in winter they dress up like a New Year's.
- It harmonizes with many conifers: thuja, cedar, pine, larch, juniper.
- Can be planted as a hedge, creating a good barrier from wind and noise;
- some undersized varieties are convenient to form in the bonsai style.
- Perfectly decorates public places - squares, parks, alleys, squares.
Dwarf varieties look great in rock gardens, flower beds and rocky gardens.
The plant tolerates pruning and urban conditions (dust, gas pollution, pollution) well.
Gardeners reviews
According to the description, growing Engelman spruce does not require much effort and is quite affordable for beginners.
The tree grows extremely spectacular and, with proper prevention, rarely gets sick.
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Judging by the reviews, the most popular varieties are Glauka, Blue Magu and Bush Lace.
Some gardeners do not consider it necessary to form a plant, even if the branches grow asymmetrically. The general outline of the crown always looks harmonious. Most make do with minimal trimming and thinning in addition to the mandatory sanitary pruning.