Tall and slender, with graceful upswept branches, the Serbian spruce is an elegant evergreen tree as a specimen in the landscape. It has glossy, dark green needles with slender streaks of white, and distinctive purple cones.
It is a threatened species in its native Serbia, Bosnia, and Herzegovina, where it has only a few patches of habitat left, but is an adaptable, moderately drought tolerant tree in the Midwest.
- Family (English) Pine
- Family (botanic) Pinaceae
- Planting site Residential and parks
- Tree or plant type Tree
- Foliage Evergreen (foliage year-round)
- Native locale Non-native
- Size range Large tree (more than 40 feet)
- Mature height 50-60 feet
- Mature width 20-25 feet
- Light exposure Full sun (6 hrs direct light daily), Partial sun / shade (4-6 hrs light daily)
- Hardiness zones Zone 4, Zone 5 (Northern Illinois), Zone 6 (City of Chicago), Zone 7
- Soil preference Moist, well-drained soil
- Drought tolerance Moderately tolerant
- Other tolerances Alkaline soil, Dry sites
- Season of interest early winter, midwinter, late winter, early spring, mid spring, late spring, early summer, midsummer, late summer, early fall, mid fall, late fall
- Flower color and fragrance Inconspicuous
- Shape or form Narrow, Pyramidal
- Growth rate Slow
- Transplants well Yes
- Planting considerations Intolerant of pollution
- Wildlife Browsers, Nesting birds, Songbirds
- Has cultivars Yes
