1884.] 
THE BLUE SPRUCE FIR. 
5 
characterises the growth of the Blue Spruce. 
Thus the latter forms the handsomer object, 
and remains—at least while young—the pre¬ 
mier amongst the ornamental firs. 
This tree comes from the Kocky Mountain 
region of North-West America, and besides 
having been sent abroad under the erroneous 
names of Picea Menziesii (more correctly P. 
sitchenns), P. Etuielmanni and P. EmjeJmanni 
glaiica, has been also called P. Parruana. 
the name of Picea Engelmanni. This is a mis¬ 
take, which I have repeatedly met with. The 
Spruce in question is my Picea piingens, for¬ 
merly referred to P. Menziesii ( = P. sitchensis), 
of the Pacific coast. The true P. Engelmanni 
is a second distinct species of the same moun¬ 
tain region, but occupying higher elevations. 
It forms extensive forests at an altitude of 
from 9,000 to 11,500 feet up to the timber 
line, and a scrub above it. It has pubescent 
PICEA PUNGENS, THE BLUE SPRUCE FIE. 
Its true name, however, is P. pungens, and it 
is distinguished from P. Menziesii by its less 
flattened and more pungent leaves, and its 
longer cylindrical cones, which have undulate 
retuse scales, minute bracts, and larger broadly- 
winged seeds. 
The Blue Spruce was named Picea jningens 
by Dr. Engelmann, who has corrected the fore¬ 
going errors in the following short note pub¬ 
lished in the Gardeners’ Chronicle (n. s. xvii., 
145) :—“ I notice a reference to the beautiful 
Blue Spruce of the Rocky Mountains under 
reddish branchlets, square leaves less sharply 
pointed, and small cones ; its light cinnamon- 
brown bark is thin and scaly, and the leaves of 
young seedlings are smooth-edged. Picea 
jmngens has white glabrous branchlets, stouter, 
in old specimens somewhat flattened, spiny- 
pointed leaves, blue in young trees and in the 
young growth of old trees ; the cones ai’e much 
longer and paler, the bark thick, crooked and 
greyish ; leaves of seedlings somewhat denti¬ 
culate. It never occurs in forests, but is scat¬ 
tered along the banks of mountain streams at 
