Picea pungens ‘Iseli Fastigiate’

Picea pungens ‘Iseli Fastigiate’, also known as the Iseli Fastigiate Colorado Blue Spruce is a slow-growing evergreen conifer first created by the famous Iseli Nursery in Boring, Oregon. The Iseli Fastigiate has dense silvery-blue needles with a columnar crown, tending to narrow ovoid with age. It has dense and regular branching with lateral branches and twigs that grow almost vertically upwards. The needles are stiff, spiky and 2 to 3 cm long. It is slow growing and will only reach approximately 3 metres high with a 1-metre spread in 10 years; it will eventually mature to heights of 10 metres tall with a 3-metre spread.

‘Iseli Fastigiate’ does well in most free-draining acidic soil types, provided it has access to adequate nutrients and is in a lightly moist and sunny position. It requires slightly drier conditions than other Picea species and tolerates urban climates and air pollution, making it suitable for urban areas across Australia. Its compact habit makes it a popular choice as a Christmas tree.