nice find, Matt!

The property owners thought you were odd? Ha! We are an odd bunch, aren't we.

Picea pungens 'Middle of Nowhere'

That would be a cool name.

The sun really lights up that plant! You should have kept going with the scions too!

Ember Horizon

Looks like an interesting find. I like, 'Golden Horizon' for a name. Have fun!

Sharp Cheddar being's it's from Wisconsin and pungens meaning/having 'sharp' needles.

Dax

Nice! Picea pungens 'Sharp Cheddar' it is. (Plus that's my favorite cheese.)

Oh my GREAT name Dax. I like 'Sharp Cheddar' also and it is one of my favorite cheeses too.

That tree sure does have a glow to it with the sun hitting it just right in your photo. Very nice find.

Fantastic tree!
& I love the name, Dax. Very witty.
Congratulations, Matt.

-Sam

Nice find there Matt. Get it grafted and see how it does. The scions look better than the third and forth photos. Did you select them from a better spot on the tree or was it that the sun light brought out the color?
Dennis

Fantastic! There was just some recent talk about finding a yellow pungens and you go out and find one. Nice find! LOVE the name Sharp Cheddar - really fits the tree and location. I hope every scion takes for you.
Cher

You can now rub elbows with folks and say "get it, 'sharp'"!

Dax

Name sounded a bit cheezy at first, ha, but it really works.

Again, nice find, nice name!

Thanks for the comments guys, it really jumped out at me as I was driving by!

Dennis, the photos were taken at sunset so the color is more creamy in some of the pictures because they were taken in almost no ambient light. Seeing the scions now during full daylight the color is a pure yellow. When the sun hits the needles they really light up.

I have Picea pungens 'Straw' and Picea pungens 'Walnut Glen', and Picea pungens 'Lutea AA' and the color is far superior to all three, especially for this time of year.

Matt

Hey! Really good catch! I'm wondering how does the tree look like in May... new yellow branches everywhere. Matt, you must share a spring pic of this pungens!

Zsolt

Love it Matt, hope those grafts make their way around! :)

Excellent name too.

-Will

I Like this Picea pungens and a good name

Henk

Sounds like you hit the jackpot,Matt. Not sure about 'Sharp Cheddar',though -commercially speaking... I would have gone for something like 'Wallstreet' ,' Wallet' or even 'Wad'; not to mention 'Ingot'! T.

Booooo!

Dax

Wasn't trying to up-stage you, Dax! The economy needs commercially-minded people,right now...
I see,you already worked-out a percentage of the takings...royalties I believe they're called LOL T.

What a great find and 'Sharp Cheddar' is perfect.

tj

TJ the name here in the US would be well received. I like your names too, for something else though. :) Not only would Sharp Cheddar be well received but easily remembered to tell people what it is. I think it's a winner.
Cher

looks sickly.. send me some scion.. and i will trial it for you ...

you wouldnt happen to be known as mac ... cuz then it could be 'mac and cheese' ... i dont know about 'matt and cheese'

ken

Not to be a spolier in this conversation but this is a perfect expample of a nagging question for me........

So it was a seedling their son planted and they don't know what kind of tree it was. What makes this one a NEW plant. Just because noone knows what it was as a seedling, why is it ANOTHER new yellow spruce. Why isn't it already one of the existing yellow spruces like 'Aurea'???? Has anyone tried to identify it ????

mark

Why isn't it already one of the existing yellow spruces like 'Aurea'???? Has anyone tried to identify it ????

===>>> because there is probably no way to do such .. short of DNA testing..

and who is going to pay for that???

what caught my eye.. is that it is in z4.. and there seems to be no indication of burn on it ...

also.. it seems to be a sunset pic.. and the yellow is intensified somewhat by perfect lighting ...

ken

Mark,

since it is a seedling Picea pungens it has unique genetics and may be worthy of propagating and assigning a cultivar name. A seedling cannot be the equivalent of a previously named cultivar...

there do not seem to be too many yellow P. pungens currently, so probably almost every new discovery will get propagated and get a cultivar name. However, if there were hundreds or thousands of yellow needled pungens seedlings, other selection criteria would be used to choose which to propagate. As an analogy, think red-leafed, Japanese maples. There are many red-leaved seedlings that are great trees, but don't distinguish themselves enough to warrant becoming named and propagated (though it still happens)

Nice find Matt, hope you have a big wheel of the new cheese in your front yard someday

Keith

Matt, that's a nice find indeed!
I would go for 'Matt's Sun Catcher'...

Or since it looks so great in the sunset maybe to call it "Sunset" :)

I took this picture with no flash. Color is accurate. Sharp Cheddar indeed.

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Keith

That color is fantastic Keith. Even looks better without the sun playing with it. Sharp Cheddar is exactly right. I hope we get to see photos after grafts are done.
Cher

Matt and I were talking and we think it's going to be great to see what this tree looks like at all seasons. The push of the graft will be fun. Can't wait.

Picea pungens (Sharp Cheddar) - no flash. Just like Keith's photo. True color.
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Dax

WOW I love that! Since you are posting the photo Dax, I am assuming he sent you some scions. Thanks for posting. It's so nice to see the start of this one. Way to go Keith (and Dax).
Cher

Good luck with producing this new beauty which is a very nice addition to the Picea pungens cultivars assortment!

Excellent find, and great to see it's being propagated!

Thanks for posting pics guys! I hope they all take for you. I am very much looking forward to see the new growth on these. Keep us updated.

hmmm...beautiful specimen, and catchy name, but new? ken?

Here is a link that might be useful: colonial gold

Nice tree. It will be interesting to see if the gold is mainly a winter color or if it is year round. I was also wondering if the owners of the tree like the name. It sure does seem to be appropriate in a number of ways.
The tree should be labeled in case someone else "discovers it" a few years from now and puts another name on it.

Bob

mmajicmann, there is a huge difference between the 'Colonial Gold' and the 'Sjarp Cheddar'.
'Colonial Gold' is only yellow in spring and summer, in autumn and winter it will go back to grey green.
The 'Sjarp Cheddar' is yellow in winter but it is not familiar yet what colour is will have in spring and summer...

nice, thanks cj

Bob,

The owners were on older couple who literally thought that I had just stepped off my spaceship from another planet because I was so excited about their tree. I stopped back the next day on my way out of town to thank them again and tell them the name and they really liked it. They live outside Plymouth, WI, a small town which just so happens to contain 5 cheese factories (including being next door to Sargento), so they thought it was very fitting.

I will go back in May to check out the spring color. I'll let you all know.

Bravo!

Dax

The first of my 'Sharp Cheddar' grafts to push. Does not seem particularly yellow and the older needles have greened up as well

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Keith

It's a beautiful color. Mine aren't pushing but, they all grafted.

It's a great pungens Matt.

And thanks for the photo Keith.

Cheers,

Dax

Keith, don't worry about it's colour.
Grafted under plastic folie or glas will never give it's true colour during the first year.
Next year you'll enjoy it's yellow colour again...

Nice to see the graft push and sure Dax's will also. Based on joy's comment you probably will have to wait until next year to see the yellow and considering the translucent pale green color I bet it will be yellow in the sun. I keep scrolling back up to look at that color which is a fantastic green too but I can see yellow bits throughout it. :)
Cher

Very cool! Thanks for posting, Keith. When my semester ends in May I will go back to the original tree to take photos of its spring flush.

Matt

I was able to get some pictures of the original tree yesterday. New growth is a powder teal color while the old growth is still bright yellow. It looks similar to P. pungens 'Wisconsin Cream' but I would say 'Sharp Cheddar' is more yellow than cream and holds it's color better during through the winter.

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Matt

Wow, that tree looks phenomenal.

Can you put me on the wait list for scion wood next winter :0) ?

-Alex

It's so nice to see the color now and that it held over winter. I love the color of new growth too. Congratulations again on this fantastic find and to all of you with grafts.
Cher

It get's its' Cheddar on' in the winter, and I do like the spring flush.

Dax

Alex, email me so I remember.

I sure love that blue/yellow color combination. It is a very nice find.