my candicans and look alikes started getting kinda ugly after 15 years or so ... but they are so cool ... crushed needles smell like grapefruit.. cones are blue ... etc ...

ken

ya I heard the candicans get ratty... but the straight species does better..not as blue though... saw this online today and could be good but hard to find... http://conifersociety.org/conifers/conifer/picea/abies/pyramidata/

If I had the space, I think picea engelmannii 'bush's lace' would be my choice. Abies concolor 'Blue cloak' also looks like a nice one.

I thought blue cloak is a semi-dwarf.... not that I'd be opposed to that necessarily... something that reaches 18 to 25 feet and 15' in width would work great... I don't have a massive lot...100' wide but 25' is driveway width a nd then another 6' adjacent to that.. so more like 70' across.. this would be planted to the left side of my home when facing it. There are a LOT of conifers out there. We have a great place called Whistling Gardens here in Ontario. They carry a lot of unique trees and shrubs and some very rare ones.. They do carry the blue cloak. it's 90 min away so just have to find the time. thanks folks

Abies concolor (White Fir) does and continues to do very well in zone 5a Ontario unless it is on a very dry site. Picea pungens (Blue spruce) does very well until it gets needlecast (which may take 5 or 50 years depending on where you live).

Swiss Stone Pine (Pinus cembra) and Blue Nootka Cypress (Cupressus nootkatensis 'Glauca') look great. Both are dense and fairly slow growing...though the Nootka Cypress around here grew x2 to x3 more last year than in a normal year on account of the rain.

I planted a cupressinna last fall in the backyard.. that could be an option, too... although I wonder if it's too narrow for the space..

Smivies, I think I am more like Cdn zone 4b - we hit -31 C in late Dec! I am quite partial to the concolor.. they've been planting them in our region for the past decade or so so no mature specimens for ref. point.. The 10 year old specimens look great (with the odd ratty one but that's par for the course I suppose) - From what I've read I can expect about 12" per year.. so in 20+ years a 20'+ foot tree would be lovely... In the wild they apparently grow very tall, but height is not as much of an issue as is width. I am planting it about 15 to 17' from a driveway. Hopefully that's enough space If i go with a concolor.

4b will be fine...I know of a ~50 yr old one in Edmonton (3b). Swiss Stone Pine is also good down to zone 3 or colder.

Good recommendations so far. Pinus cembra wood be a great pine choice.

You might also consider Abies lasiocarpa var. arizonica 'Glauca Compacta' if you're wanting blue. Here is a picture of one in the center-background. Nice dense blue.

Abies var. arizonica 'Glauca Compacta'

===>>> well duh.. its right outside my front door ... sublime ... ken

ps: dax have a new name????

2101 .. multiple leaders is normal ...

same plant 2006

Abies concolor 'Compacta' is pretty cool also ....

that 'compacta' is VERY cool

ron

just to be clear.. my last post shows 2 different flavors of compacta

Love that Abies concolor 'Compacta' and wish I had picked one up when a local nursery had them several years ago. At the time, I had been concerned about hardiness and didn't want to dish out a hundred bucks for something I was unsure of. Though, a seedling Abies concolor planted eight years ago has thrived in a sheltered location and now being 9 ft tall and having pushed 18 inches of new growth last year ... hopefully, 'Compacta' is of equal hardiness. Anyways, folks always get exited when seeing this specimen and well, so do I, lol. Gonna contact that Edmonton nursery and inquire if they might again bring in 'Compacta'.

the "Compactas" look awesome but might grow too slowly... i am treating this planting as a specimen and as a stand-alone, the dwarf varieties would be lost in this site.. I'd definitely consider them though for other sites, like closer to patio walkways, closer to the foundation, etc.. the concolor straight species and comparables (if one exists), seems like a good choice... i don't exactly know how compacted or not my soil is though..and the literature on them says they prefer a "sandier" soil...there is some clay for sure in my soil.. but not extremely heavy. lots of sun, that's for sure and it does drain toward the rear of my property. Keep suggestions coming if we are missing anything! thanks!!

Check out Picea x 'Troemner' aka Picea omorika 'Blue Sky'

maple grove; hard to find info/images... it appears to be a low growing spreader?

By no means. It is a fast-growing upright spruce, very blue, and better suited for many regions of the country than P. pungens. Here are some pictures I pulled off of Facebook for you. The first two are young plants, the last one is cones on an older plant.

FYI It's a cross between Picea omorika & Picea pungens 'Koster'

picea omorika silberblue looks gorgeous... just saw some images... the omorika seems like a real hardy and pest-free alternative too to picea pungen

this is the silberblue... this is exactly what I am looking for... tight formation, classic christmas tree.. I suppose that the concolor is very similar but softer texture.

picea omorika BRUNS is really attractive too... not the pendulous cultivar but the more conical variety...

^ Totally agree with you on that!

it's hard to find a lot of these species! bummer...

Abies koreana 'Silberlocke' could be a good option and widely available. It's not blue, but the white curled needles make it very unique

The Korean firs are temperamental in our region so i've been told.. may not survive our winters either... I'm zone 4 USDA (Cdn zone 5 = 4 USA)

Is that the straight species of omorika maackie? The serbians seem to be pretty narrow... nice attribute for certain spots if so...

I went with Picea omorika 'Sky Trails' for the front yard; it's supposed to be approx. 10' wide by the time it's 30-35' tall.

I didn’t plant it, but it is a seedling. And yes, they are naturally narrow, but not this narrow. The snow has collapsed the branches onto themselves, making it appear very narrow. Today we hit the low 40’s, so the snow is gone and it has resumed its normal form. It was quite a spectacle while it lasted.

Standard concolor fir in a Bedford, Pa cemetery:

Wow! That's a BIG concolor... guessing that's a 70'+ and at least 25 wide

Chad, I'd snap Picea omorika 'Sky Trails' up in a second if I ever were to come across it, what a gorgeous specimen !!

Whistling Gardens has a #7 of this...Picea omorika de Ruyter. Anyone familiar with this?

Looks pretty nice. Slow growing and doesn't achieve the heights/mass of a concolor, but thats not necessarily a bad thing... I am thinking in 20+ years the concolor may overwhelm my front yard... I already have red oak there that is 8+ feet and won't take long to hot 20'+

de Ruyter will likely be too slow growing for the spot you want but its a must have.

Abies concolor 'Compacta' is another must have as well. I'm a bit surprised its not more readily available with its gorgeous blue needles that tend to be thicker than most.

I will tell you Picea omorika 'Silbeblue' is a special cultivar. It almost seems like a hybrid of some sort. With its more erect, finer texture with stunning silver color that appears more intense for whatever reason,than any other Serbian Spruce cultivar. Of all the typical pyrimidal evergreens I had this one stood out to me year round. Blue Sky, Bruns, Skytrails and the likes just didn't seem to stand up to this one.

In addition I noticed the couple I had had no burn in 2012 but yet most other Serbian Spruce had some burn.

Picea omorika is one of those botanical conundrums where it has a fairly small geographic range in the wild, but it does well in a wide variety of garden use.

Beng, that is a nice White Fir specimen. It looks like it may have benefited when young from trees and shrubbery on the far side. Do you know what direction that would be?q

Then there's 'Blue Cloak' - I can get this too. Here's his list... great place. Thanks for the suggestions.... http://www.whistlinggardens.ca/05-downloads/180106-Whistling%20Gardens-2018-Retail-List.pdf

Picea omorika 'Silberblue' is gorgeous... can't seem to find it on this side of the border though :(

Blue Sky is still nice if you are limited to that supplier. You could always see if your local retailer can order Silberblue from Iseli.

Blue Cloak is a stunner. It starts out slow but then cranks it up a bit. Color remains very blue throughout the winter.

maackia, that pic was taken looking east. One thing I've experienced w/firs is that they are very vulnerable to late frosts, making it almost impossible for me to get any to grow here. But the one above is in the town, so the urban heat-island prb'ly prevents very late frosts there. There are some even bigger concolors & Nordmann firs in the Sharpsburg (MD) National Cemetery, which is on a hillside (prevents late frosts).

Aside, I have a small Serbian spruce -- sole survivor from a bunch of seedlings. Its needles are a beautiful blue-green, but I have to say, it lacks the growth/vigor of Norway spruce.

Splaker, where are you located? I'm in Grey cty. Darren from WG is great to deal with, if you are looking for something in particular that he doesn't have, he will try to get it if he's able. Jim & Simone @ Vineland Nurseries are good to, have a great selection. I know they have 'Bruns' in stock.

Does have done well for me, including several varieties of koreana. Abies koreana x lasiocarpa is another stunner, 12+"/yr. A word of caution, if you have rabbits in your yard, I have found that they very much enjoy picea omorika. This year they have even attacked p. abies 'Perry's Gold. They reduced its base from about 45" to about 24" overnight. Grrr.

This is the koreocarpa. Base is narrower than the rest, I think it may have had scions harvested prior to me getting it.

Riverwoodgardens, I am in King Township, about 30 minutes north of Toronto - We are west of Aurora/Newmarket area if you know the region... thanks for the tips... Yes, Darren seems very professional. I have emailed him a few times and always gets back to me with a good response even in the dead of winter when many places don't get back to you. So do you like the Bruns? I do have a rabbit problem.. they love my recently planted serviceberry bushes... I've caged up a lot of plants this winter with chicken wire. The buggers... hoping the coyotes and foxes do there job around here! I will look into the Vineland Nurseries... I have never even heard of them and I do a lot of googling! Thanks!

Splaker, I am just in the Hanover area, not that far from you... about an hour and twenty perhaps. I am thinking you are likely in the Schomberg area. Another option is Yesterday's Garden up here in Hanover. Karen is only about 10min from me. If you come up here, let me know. I'd be happy to meet you and show you my gardens.

I do like the Bruns. Unfortunately, 2 winters ago the rabbits got hold of the one and bared it to the trunk up to knee height or so. It has been caged in winter since then and is starting to come back. A few weeks ago they decided to make the one out front match. I have so many things caged and wrapped this winter, and sprayed with bobbex. I think we have a couple dozen rabbits thinking our place is great to dine.

Yes, basically Schomberg... small Hamlet called Pottageville... We have so many rabbits here I can't believe the hawks and owls haven't figured that out yet. It's a pain to wrap the cage around things.. unsightly. Thanks for the offer.. If I am going through that area, I will let you know. Cheers!

Forgot to mention, Vineland has a Facebook page, but doesn't really update. Email and Simone will get back to you in a day or two. If you go there, be prepared to spend a few hours or better. They do this from their home and have acres of nursery stock. They carry more varieties of Japanese maples than any other place I know of.

Whistling Gardens is able to get a Silberblue in for me! #3 for $80... I think i am going to go for it.. Whaas convinced me!

Think about fencing whole planting areas instead of individual specimens. This way you can keep them fenced indefinitely, without having to make changes due to plant growth.

Sheridan nursery has a Plant Finder on their web site you might want to investigate. Search parameters include soil characteristics.

http://www.sheridannurseries.com/plant_browser

If you don't know already this (from their web site) is who they are:

Sheridan Nurseries was founded in 1913 in a town called Sheridan, Ontario (now known as Oakville). We have grown a lot since then: 8 Garden Centres and over 900 acres of farmland. We are also a major supplier of goods to garden centres in eastern Canada and the U.S.A. Our nursery has also been responsible for several plant introductions including Green Gem and DeGroot’s Spire Cedar.

this particular tree would be a specimen for a front garden... I am working on a border planting area and sort of going about it slowly..adding and subtracting.

Thanks for the suggestions.. yes, Sheridan is fairly well known in these parts...