Okla, try looking up Rat Tail Spruce. Sorry I don't know the botanical information, but your description sounds like what I have.

The technical term is, I believe, fastigiate. Here are some photos of narrow conifers (though not with the scanty-foliage I think of Charlie Brown's tree as having):

{{gwi:273946}}

http://www.conifer.com.au/narrow_conifers

Oh, ken, we need you....

Both of your answers sent me into a google-frenzy but still not quite what I'm looking for... I think the rat tail spruce is very close but the tree I've seen isn't "weepy" as the rat tail appears to be.

This image below is similar to what I've seen though when I search for "Picea Pungens Virgata" this is not what I see.

Perhaps it is a conifer and not a tree... it certain is smaller than what I would consider a tree to be.. as often as I see it I would think it would be easier to find out what it is!!

Here is a link that might be useful:

Your Picea pungens/Colorado spruce is both a conifer and a tree.

Conifers are a type of woody plant which has needles (or scales) and cones. They can be any size: trees or shrubs. (And some conifers are "sub-shrubs" -- really, really short, and destined by their genes to remain so.)

I have a dozen dwarf mugo pines (part of the "bones" of a 100' bed of mostly-perennials which snakes through the front lawn). I planted them in the spring of 2008, so they're at least 7 years old and are all under 24" (and as they're seedlings rather than clones of a particular cultivar, they vary considerably in habit and height: one is only a foot tall).

And that's not very small: there are mini conifers that grow an inch a year -- or less! Mine vary from about 1 1/2 to 3" per year, and next year I'll replace the one which died as well as a couple which are too vertical and not horizontal enough for my purposes.

When a shrub or tree's height and width are described on a tag, in a garden book, or on a website, that is usually its expected "mature" size: the height the shrub/tree is expected to be (more or less; on the average) when 10 years old. Divide the mature size by 10, and that tells you how much the shrub/tree is likely to grow per year. So at 20 years, it will be roughly twice the size it was at 10 years old -- and so on, until it dies of old age or other causes.

You might want to poke around on GW's Conifers forum:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/conif/

Here's a current thread about some fastigiate Picea pungens discoveries which may end up in your nursery some day:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/conif/msg06233149727.html?10

Thank you missingtheobvious!

I found a nursery in my state, hoping to have better luck finding what I'm looking for and did find something similar under the conifers!

Both of these are what I have seen
http://www.soonerplantfarm.com/plant/cedar-blue-atlas/
http://www.soonerplantfarm.com/plant/cypress-arizona-blue-ice/

So this leads me to my next question... I am not certain this is what I'm looking for (though it does look very similar to what I have seen) these have mature sizes of 30 ft or 40-60 ft. I have seen these planted very close to homes which makes me wonder if it is what I am looking for. Also tonight I saw one at McDonalds less than 2ft from the drive thru menu!! If this tree can get up to 30ft why would someone plant it so close to their home??

take a look at Norfolk pine.

Here is a link that might be useful: Norfolk pines

try the conifer experts in the conifer forum... and do mention where you are.. some of these things are highly location specific ...

we are real good enablers ...

and it seems.. you have spent more time googling.. than it would take to get and post a pic .... lol [but for the fact it was probably dark out]

presuming you are looking because you wnat one... the high heat of summer is not the best planting time ... for conifers.. so we have plenty of time to get you what you want.. for the NEXT PROPER PLANTING SEASON ....

ken

Assuming oklagirl is in Oklahoma she won't see Norfolk Pines in a Drive-thru. Sooner = Oklahoma. My guess is a Cedrus deodara.

Blue-green form.
http://loneelder.com/images/Cedrus_deodara_Kashnir.JPG

Here is a link that might be useful: Cedrus deodara (golden)

This post was edited by saltcedar on Thu, Jun 27, 13 at 11:28

If this tree can get up to 30ft why would someone plant it so close to their home??

Many people buy a shrub or tree and apparently believe it will stay the same size all of its life.

The Previous Owners (who live up the road) planted the 7 shrubs on the east side of the house within a foot of the foundation.... Those are all gone now, except for the Previous Owner's grandma's lilac (they live up the road and would be grieved if I cut it down).

The 12' tall rhododendrons south of the carport were by some fluke planted 2' from the foundation, but there's a 4" wisteria stump which had been planted only an inch or two from the carport cement.

This post was edited by missingtheobvious on Thu, Jun 27, 13 at 11:56

A photograph is necessary.

Could it be a young Cupressus arizonica ?

Could it be a type of bonsai tree?

Here is a link that might be useful: bonsai

Maybe thinking of the Podocarpus that people insist using against their foundations?

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:273947}}

As saltcedar stated, when I brought home and planted my blue deodar cedar, my wife nicknamed it the "Charlie Brown Christmas Tree" the first time she laid eyes on it and always refers to it as such. You might also look at blue atlas cedar for an ID.

John

PS - after 2 years she is maybe finally starting to like it a tiny bit. I love it =)