﻿Trees of New York State 93 



PINACEAE 



Picea rubra (I)u Roi) Dietr. [Picea rubeus Sarg. ; Picea australis Small.] 



Red Spruce 



Habit — A tree at maturity attaiuing a height of 70-80 feet, with a trunk 

 diameter of 2-3 feet, occasionally becoming 100 feet tall, on high moun- 

 tain slopes often dwarfed and shrubby. Crown, where light permits, 

 narrowly conical, consisting of slender spreading branches reaching nearly 

 or quite to the ground. When crowded in the forest, the crown is greatly 

 reduced in size (sometimes to a mere tip), leaving the bole clean for 

 two-thirds of its length. 



Leaves — Borne on sterigmata in close spirals, standing out from all side'' 

 of the branches, ascending, awl-shaped, 4-sided, blunt or acute at th( 

 apex, curved inward above the middle, yellowish green and lustrous at 

 maturity, %-% of an inch long, falling gradually after the sixth year. 



Flowers — Appearing in April and May, monoecious, borne in cones. Stami- 

 uate cones terminal or subterminal, short-stalked, about ^4 of an inch 

 long, oval, bright red at maturity. Ovulate cones terminal or subtermi- 

 nal, on different branches, oblong-cylindrical, about % of an inch in 

 length, reddish green at pollination. 



Fruit — An ovate-oblong, purplish, light green cone, 1-21/2 inches in length, 

 borne on short, usually straight peduncles, attaining full size by the 

 middle of the summer, turning light reddish brown and shining at 

 maturity, opening and beginning to fall in the late autumn, a few per- 

 sisting until the following sununer. Cone-scales rounded, reddish brown, 

 A\'ith entire margin. Seeds dark brown, winged, about Vs of an inch long. 



Winter characters — Branehlets rather stout, light reddish or orange-brown, 

 covered with. rusty-broA\Ti hairs, becoming dark broA^"n and smooth the 

 second season. Three- and four-year branches scaly. Buds %-% of an 

 inch in length, ovate, acute, with closely appressed, acute scales. Mature 

 bark reddish brown, thin, flaking off in thin scales. 



Habitat — Attaining its best development on well-drained uplands, table- 

 lands, and mountain slopes, often in admixture with Yellow Birch, Beech, 

 and Maple, like\\ise invading swamps in company with Black Spruce and 

 Tamarack. The common spruce of the Adiroudacks. Thrives well on 

 thin soils. 



Range — Newfoundland southwest through the elevated portions of Xew 

 England and New York, thence along the Alleghanies to Georgia. Zones 

 C, D, and E. 



Uses — An important timber tree, ranking second only to Wliite Pine in the 

 state as a timber-producing species and, due to the exhausted supply of 

 the last, the most important timber tree of the forests of the northeastern 

 states. Wood light, soft, even-grained, reddish yellow with nearly white 

 sapAvood, resonant. Largely manufactured into lumber and used for a 

 variety of purposes where a soft, easily workable wood is required. The 

 best wood for the sounding boards of musical instruments because of its 

 resonant qualities. An important source of chemical wood pulp. 



