The representative of one of the many species of conifers of the Sosnovy family, a spruce well known to everyone, owes its name to the ancient Romans. That is how the translation of the word "resin" sounds. In the green kingdom, spruce is one of the first places and belongs to the genus, in which there are almost 50 species of plants distributed around the world: from Northern Europe and Central Asia to North America. What happens spruce, what kind of tree? How long has she lived on Earth and what forms does it take? Let's try to find the answers to these questions.
Description of spruce
Tall, straight-stemmed, evergreen slender trees with a dense conical crown, narrower at a young age, spruce covered with branches to the very base. Their trunk is hard to see - it is hidden by the widest spruce "paws." Young trees have a smooth bark of gray color with a brownish tint, on old spruce trunks it is thinner, in some places peeling. The needles are needle-like and can stay on branches for up to 7–9 years, although with a deterioration in the environment these periods shorten, and in the urban environment the duration of needles conservation does not exceed 3 years. Needles - single, tetrahedral or flattened, spirally located on branches. Cones hanging, elongated, cylindrical. Ripening in the fall, they open when the seeds are dispersed. Broad-base seed cone flakes cover small seeds equipped with wings that surround them in a cup shape.
Plant Features
The description of spruce is unambiguous: this is one of the fairly unpretentious plants on Earth. It is undemanding to soil fertility, perfectly survives on very poor soils. She is not afraid of the shadow slopes and a slight overmoistening of the soil cover. It is incredibly cold-resistant, and it does not frighten sharply continental climate. But most species do not withstand gas contamination and smoke, nevertheless, the tree is used in urban landscaping and is used both in single and in group plantings for park alleys and snow strips. Dwarf or stunted decorative forms are perfect for decorating the landscape of small garden plots, slides and rock gardens.
European spruce, or ordinary
The name of this tree speaks for itself and accurately indicates its habitat. European spruce grows in the European part of Russia. It is the foundation of the taiga. In the north of Siberia and European Russia, arrays of ordinary spruce are gradually replaced by Siberian spruce. What is this tree? There is no clear distinction between these species. In the choice of growing conditions, spruce differs significantly from larch and pine, but there are no sharp intraspecific differences. They are so shade-loving that it is quite difficult to grow in open treeless areas, since even at the stage of shoots that have begun to grow, they are damaged by return spring frosts or get sunburn. In addition, they suffer very much from grass fires provoked by seasonal arson.
Periods and features of tree growth
The first 10 years, the tree spruce grows slowly. Then the growth rate increases sharply, and after 100-120 years they stop again. Uneven, spasmodic growth distinguishes European spruce. That this is a recognized long-liver - has long been known. If conditions allow, she easily lives up to 250-300 years. The best soils for it are loam and sandstone. On them, it forms a deep root system, firmly holding it to the surface. But spruce is a lover of rather damp places. On excessively moistened soils, the tree forms a small surface root system and, with strong gusts of wind, can not resist and collapse to the ground. Spruce tolerates even slight waterlogging, if it has a flowing character. It should be noted that the root system of spruce is much smaller than that of pine, which explains its instability in winds. A feature of the tree is that its lower branches do not die off and remain dry, therefore it is rather dark and damp in the spruce forests.
Spruce growing conditions
Spruce can be grown in most regions of the European part of Russia, in Siberia and in the south of the Far East. But this is a very delicate tree species.
It is better to plant it under the canopy of more stable representatives of the flora - oak, birch or pine. This is especially important for sufficiently dry and poor soils, on which spruce grows heavily, since well-moistened soils are preferred. Spruce is much more demanding of growing conditions than pine, which can perfectly develop on dry sandy soils. That is why spruce and pine rarely grow nearby - they need too different conditions.
Breeding
It is easy to grow spruce from seeds, which are very easy to collect: it is enough to cut a few fir cones in the fall and hold them at home until completely dry. It is not necessary to peel them. After drying, the cones will open themselves and give away seeds, which usually have excellent germination. They should be treated with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, and then placed in pots with calcined river sand, deepened by 1-1.5 cm. The containers are installed on the top shelf of the refrigerator for stratification. This procedure is necessary, since in the natural nature all the seeds of conifers are exposed to cold. Stratification stimulates seedling germination. Unprocessed cold seeds may lie in the ground for several years, but never rise. Containers should be in the cold for 3 months. After this time, containers with planted seeds are placed in a bright and warm place.
Landing time
The ideal sowing time is considered to be the end of October - November. If you plant seeds during this period, then take the container out of the refrigerator in February-March. This is the most favorable time for germination, as spring comes, daylight hours increase, and all plants start growing.
Watering and care
The sprouting period of seedlings requires particularly generous watering, as it should act in accordance with natural conditions. Indeed, in the spring, during snowmelt, the soil is especially moist. Heat and humidity are the main conditions for activating coniferous seedlings. After a couple of weeks, baby spruce should rise. That this is a real conifer can be seen right away: the first needles appear. Now it is necessary to exercise caution and maintain balance, i.e., water the sprouts as much as necessary, avoiding both underfilling and excessive moisture. Once every two weeks, young fir trees need to be fed and loosened the upper soil layer.
When it gets warmer in the open air and return frosts recede, small seedlings can be planted in the ground. Before planting, compost or humus mixed with earth and some complex mineral fertilizers are added to the hole. More Christmas trees do not feed. Having placed the seedlings in the hole, the roots are gently covered with soil, compacted, well shed with water and create a small
a greenhouse made of covering material, film or a glass jar.
This is necessary for faster acclimatization of seedlings.
Greenhouse seedlings should be ventilated every day. They need to be opened, condensate removed and soil moisture checked. After 7-10 days, shelters can be removed, and the soil around the fir trees mulched to maintain soil moisture. As a rule, in nurseries, seedlings of spruce are grown in containers for 3-4 years. Since the tree grows very slowly, this period is considered optimal for the successful further development of the conifer called spruce. Saplings of this age are more adapted to temperature changes, they are no longer afraid of frost and sunburn. They are also planted with one top dressing and good watering.
Varieties of spruce and their application
Like many conifers, spruce is quite decorative. She has always been an adornment of the Russian estate, gardens and parks. Today, thanks to a large selection work, many types of fir trees used in garden landscape design have been bred. Herringbone, grown personally with seeds, will not only decorate the site, but may also become the ancestor of family traditions. The specified method of growing spruce seeds is suitable for all tall species. In addition, such cultivation is a guarantee of excellent adaptation of the seedling to the climatic conditions of the area. Of the existing species, dwarf spruce attracts special attention of landscape designers. Low-growing varieties usually do not exceed a meter height, have a wide dense crown.
They are great for decorating garden compositions, stone and alpine slides. One of the most spectacular and sought-after representatives of such species is Nidiformis spruce.
Dwarf forms: description
Nidiformis is a variety with a round crown shape and a central recess. The height of the tree barely reaches 1 m, and the crown reaches a diameter of 3 m. A flattened crown is formed in the form of a nest, since the main branches of the tree are absent, and numerous shoots grow fan-shaped. Gorgeous short dark green needles, very dense and evenly covering the branches. The tree grows very slowly, adding no more than 3-4 cm in height and 5-7 cm in width per year. The fir-tree is undemanding to the soil, grows well on moderately fertile sandstones of any level of acidity, but can die if groundwater is constantly located near the root system. This spruce, like all undersized conifers, the photos of which are presented, is very decorative. And its slow growth allows you to maintain the once created landscape for many years. Nidiformis is frost-resistant, but it is better to shelter young plants when there is a threat of spring return frosts.
Evergreen Dwarf Ephedra: Reproduction
Low-growing forms are not pure species and propagate exclusively in the vegetative way - by cuttings and layering, but not by seeds.
The fact is that similar plants appear as a result of mutations of various species of conifers, and usually tall, rather than dwarf conifers, grow from their seeds. Photos of decorative undersized species can be found in special literature. If you can’t grow such a conifer on your own, there is only one way - to the store.
Dwarf trees are usually sold in containers. The basic rule when buying this rather expensive acquisition is the firm belief that the root system of a seedling is strong, well developed, not damaged mechanically or by pests. And before going to the store, you should familiarize yourself with the information on the shape of the crown, features, plant size and care for it.
Many conifers maintain their good shape for many years, regardless of variety. Low-growing species may first have a spherical crown, and form a cone over time. Nevertheless, spruce and pine are so common trees that it is impossible to imagine Russia without these magnificent conifers.