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Fat Albert Blue Spruce

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Fat Albert Blue Spruce (Picea pungens ‘Fat Albert’):A dense and compact spire-shaped evergreen accent tree for general landscape use with large stout branches and long, very pointy silvery-blue needles, very showy and colorful, an ideal size for smaller home landscapes, extremely hardy and rugged

Grafted Colorado Spruce, like Fat Albert, have shown good disease resistance compared to the regular Colorado Spruce (Blue Spruce).

Larger alternatives include: Black Hills Spruce and Norway Spruce

Characteristics

Average Landscape Height:
15 feet
Average Landscape Width:
10 feet
Growth Rate:
slow
Genus:
Picea
Species:
pungens
Cultivar:
Fat Albert
Summer Foliage Color:
blue
Minimum Light:
full sun
Maximum Light:
full sun
Minimum Moisture:
dry
Maximum Moisture:
moist
Plant Form:
pyramidal
Canopy:
low
Pruning:
only prune new growth
Pollution Tolerance:
high
Other Species Names:
Blue Colorado Spruce;Colorado Blue Spruce
Branching:
excurrent
Evergreen:
1
Density:
dense

Ornamental Features

Fat Albert Blue Spruce is primarily valued in the landscape for its distinctively pyramidal habit of growth. It has attractive blue evergreen foliage which emerges silvery blue in spring. The needles are highly ornamental and remain blue throughout the winter. The rough gray bark adds an interesting dimension to the landscape.

Landscape Attributes

Fat Albert Blue Spruce is a dense evergreen tree with a strong central leader and a distinctive and refined pyramidal form. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

Planting & Growing

Fat Albert Blue Spruce will grow to be about 15 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 10 feet. It has a low canopy, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 80 years or more.

This tree should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for xeriscaping or the moisture-conserving landscape. It is not particular as to soil type or pH, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selection of a native North American species.

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