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nemoooo

Columnar Blue Spruce 'Fastigiata'

nemoooo
16 years ago

Does anyone have an older Columnar Blue Spruce 'Fastigiata'? And if so, how wide is yours? I was told these get 2-4 ft. wide, but for some reason have trouble believing that. I have one along a fence near the corner of the house, about 3 feet out from the foundation. Supposedly these are slow growers and grow upright and narrow. And if this gets up to 6 feet wide that would not be a problem. However, if it will get much wider than that, I might want to move it now before it gets too big. At this point it's only about 4 ft tall. I would appreciate hearing anyone's experience with these!

If anyone has pics of theirs I would enjoy seeing them! I have seen pics posted on the internet but they never tell you how wide they are in the photo.

Comments (12)

  • ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
    16 years ago

    Picea pungens 'Iseli Fastigate' aka 'blue totem' .. maybe 3 feet wide ... all branches point up ... but notice how it gets an inch or two wider every year ... ken

    {{gwi:643777}}

  • maree12352
    16 years ago

    He

    I would like to make a small correction on the naming of the conifer. Iseli Fastigiate and Wells "Blue Totem" are not the same tree. The Blue Totem remains more upright growing while the Iseli Fastigiate will tend to have its branches lay a bit more open. Other than that change, I do agree with your assesment on the growth habit. It is very columnar, maybe 10' tall and 3' wide. We have several large plants hedged out in our growing area here at Wells Nursery. Ken, I don't know if you purchased this plant with both names listed, if so, the nursery tagged it incorrectly. Thanks! Maree

  • ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
    16 years ago

    i bought it as iseli fastigate ...

    someone here told me the other name ....

    which is the tree in the picture????

    ken

  • dcsteg
    16 years ago

    These are Wells 'Blue Totums'

    Dave

    {{gwi:770736}}

  • dcsteg
    16 years ago

    Spell check: Totems

    Dave

  • nemoooo
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Thanks for the info Maree!

    I would be willing to bet Ken's are the Wells Blue Totems, as it resembles those in Dave's photo. I must have the Iseli, because mine is more loose/open, as Maree describes. Not all the branches on mine are pointed straight upwards, particularly those near the bottom... they look like they droop outward a little bit. I will post a pic if I can get a good one tomorrow. Wish I knew more about these two types before I purchased, as I would have preferred the Blue Totem for their "neater" appearance. Mine was purchased at our local Lowe's... I will have to find the tag and see if it lists a nursery or anything.

  • conifers
    16 years ago

    I'm guessing that 'Iseli Fastigiate' and 'Fastigiata' are the similar clones with this 'Blue Totems' being the oddball of the three. Dave's tree has noticabily longer needles in my opinion which appear to be spaced further apart... and are a steely-blue.

    This book I have, 'List of Conifer Names' (Erhardt 2006) lists only 'Fastigiata' and 'Iseli Fastigiate'.
    It states:
    'Fastigiata' - Hort. CDN 1987 (CDN = Canada) (Hort = from horticultural cultivation, without circumscribing author/breeder)
    'Iseli Fastigiate' Iseli Nurs 1963

    The website furthermore for Well's Nursery lists Dave's Plant as:
    1975 Picea pungens fastigiata Wells 'Blue Totem' Spruce Colorado Blue Totem

    So Well's has their own introduction.

    Then, Jacobson 'North American Landscape Trees' lists:
    'Fastigiata' as Canadian Intro and further states that it appeared in '1993-93 Buchholz & Buchholz Nursery, Gaston, OR'.
    'Iseli Fastigiate' 1963 by Jean Iseli and in production later.

    So it seems we have three different columnar blue spruces.

    Dax

  • conifers
    16 years ago

    Bickelhaupt Arboretum - Clinton, IA - 'Blue Totem' P.pun. - no "s" in "Totem". Or, I mis-labled. Bickelhaupt has a plant list, and they no-longer list this cultivar as being in their collection.

    Dax

  • maree12352
    16 years ago

    Ken

    Your plant does indeed look like a 'Blue Totem'. Very tight growth. It will be interesting to see what it does as it matures.

    Maree

  • conifers
    16 years ago

    Maree, I now see you're from Wells Nursery.

    It would seem that four plants are now in circulation.

    I actually have a friend with a 'Fastigiata' that's maybe four or six feet tall. It looks exactly like the tight-congested growth of 'Iseli Fastigiate' and 'Blue Totem'.

    Well's Nursery's 'Blue Totems' being the exception.

    Thanks for chiming in Maree.

    Dax

  • nemoooo
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Ok, here are some pics I took today of mine...

    As you can see, it is not as tight as the others. I dug the card out and looked at it, but it doesn't list any nursery -- it's just a regular Lowe's tag. The name is listed as Picea Pungens 'Fastigiata'.

  • conifers
    16 years ago

    put my thoughts on cancel!

    Later.