Picea pungens Iseli Foxtail - Blue Spruce

Picea pungens 'Iseli Foxtail' is a medium-sized Blue Spruce, which develops into a narrow and slender pyramid shape, and over time forms a beautiful tree full of elegance and character. Its bluish-green foliage is adorned in spring with very unique young shoots, in the form of tufted and twisted plumes of metallic blue. Its slow growth and reasonable size, without maintenance, make it suitable for medium-sized spaces, either as a standalone or in a mass planting. It is a magnificent evergreen conifer that can tolerate pollution, heat, and occasional drought once well established.

Native to the western coast of the United States and the Rocky Mountains of North America, extending to Canada, the Picea pungens, also known as Colorado Blue Spruce or Blue Spruce, is a very hardy evergreen conifer belonging to the Pinaceae family. In its natural environment, it grows slowly, presenting an elegant and very regular conical habit, with horizontally layered branches. This tree can reach a height of 25 to 40m (82 to 131ft), tolerates limestone soils and some drought.

The 'Iseli Foxtail' variety, derived from this species, is distinguished by its narrow pyramidal habit and airy branches, and its young shoots resembling fox tails. It is a medium-sized conifer, with a very slender habit and branching, with horizontal and layered branches, similar to those of a cedar. Its growth is moderate, at a rate of 25cm (10in) per year, so that at 20 years old, it reaches about 12m (39ft) in height, and 4.5m (1 and 15ft) in width at the base. It produces slightly spiralled branches, covered with short needles at their tips, while they are longer at the base. They are prickly, arranged in dense brushes and radially implanted around the branches. Its spring shoots are of an intense metallic blue. The rest of the year, its colour is intermediate between greyish-green and blue-green. This variety produces elongated and scaly brown cones. Its rough, scaly, grey bark is quite decorative.
 

With its cedar-like habit and ease of cultivation in cool climates, the 'Iseli Foxtail' blue spruce will become the focal point of any garden that welcomes it. It thrives in many situations, under various climates, as long as the soil is well-drained, preferably neutral or acidic, and the exposure is sunny. This plant pairs well with the geometric lines of swimming pools and masonry works. It can be associated with bushy conifers such as Microbiota decussata, with its bronze winter foliage, or with more globular varieties like Picea glauca 'Echiniformis'. The true graphic qualities of conifers naturally impose themselves in the design of a contemporary garden, which prefers the aesthetics of shapes, silhouettes, and textures over the dance of flowers. These plants, with their reassuring permanence, structurally define a border, mark pathways, line terraces, replacing the strong presence of trimmed boxwood or holly. The key is to play with volumes and colours.