PINACEAE 



White Spruce 

 Pieca glauca (Moench) Voss {Picea canadensis B.S. & P.) 



HABIT. A tree 60-70 feet high and 1 J/2-2 feet in diameter 

 (max. 120 by 4 feet); slender symmetrical bole; crown nar- 

 rowly to broadly pyramidal with long, thick branches. 



LEAVES. Tending to be crowded on upper side of branch 

 by twisting of those on lower side; !/3-% inch long; 4— angled; 

 blue-green, occasionally with whitish tinge; rigid acute tips; 

 odor pungent when crushed; 2 resin ducts in cross section, 



FLOWERS. Male pale red to yellow; female with red or 

 yellow-green scales. 



FRUIT. 1-2J/2 inches long; oblong-cylindrical; nearly ses- 

 sile; cone scales flexible, rounded and smooth at apex; light 

 green or reddish before shedding seed, and becoming light brown 

 and falling soon after. Seed: Yq inch long, pale brown, oblique 

 wing y^-Ys inch long. 



TWIGS. Glabrous, or in far Northwest downy; rather slen- 

 der; orange-brown; skunklike odor when bruised. Winter buds: 

 Vk-Vi inch long; ovoid, obtuse, and chestnut-brown. 



BARK. Thin, V^-Vi inch thick; ash-brown with silvery inner 

 bark, separated into irregular thin plates or scales. 



WOOD. Important in Northeast; used for pulp, construction 

 lumber, boxes and crates, sounding boards, etc. 



SILVICAL CHARACTERS. Tolerant of considerable shade, 

 recovers from suppression well; growth slow, but faster than 

 black spruce; tree attains age of 250-300 years; reproduction 

 abundant on moist sites; shallow, spreading root system. 



HABITAT. Hudsonian and Canadian zones; typical of low, 

 damp woods, and banks of streams and lakes; altitudinal range 

 from sea level to 5,000 feet; frequently gives way to black spruce 

 or tamarack on wet sites, and to lodgepole pine on dry sites; often 

 forms pure, dense forests, but also in mixture with black spruce, 

 fir, birch, poplars, and willows. 



GENERAL. The western white spruce, Picea glauca var. 

 albertiana (S. Brown) Sarg., is the form found in the Rocky 

 Mountain region and Black Hills. It is characterized by some- 

 what shorter and broader cones and a narrow crown. 



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