So you want a spreading blue conifer?

You might as well know nothing will ever grow to 4'x3'x4' and then quite growing. Sooner or later it will out grow your area. Conifers grow till they die.

I can recommend a host of them but one of my favorites is Picea pungens 'Blue Horizon' offered by Well's Nursery.

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Easily obtainable through most larger nursery's
Picea pungens St. Mary's Broom'
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Picea pungens 'Procumbens' Iseli Nursery
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One more for your consideration.
Picea pungens 'Lundeby's Dwarf'. Iseli Nursery.
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Picea pungens 'Gerald's Dwarf Blue'
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Of course the old stand by that is used by a lot of nursery's for landscaping.
Picea pungens 'Montgomery'
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considering your name.. is lime an issue???

ken

considering your name.. is lime an issue???
ken

No, it is not, but the question makes sense.

As far as the Picea Pungens goes, that was my first thought. You appear to know them well, so could you elaborate on the differences a little for me. They all look similar but different to me but what sets them apart? Is on slower growing than another?

Thanks.

I am not going to elaborate the differences which are minimal. Each one has a different presentation in habit and color. That is easily seen. You can Google them, go to the nursery web site or the ACS Data Base for further information.

Picea pungens tend to be more heat and drought tolerant then other species. I didn't loose one in the record setting drought and heat wave we just went through.

Growth rate 3-6 inches a year depending on your micro climate with 'Gerald's Dwarf Blue' being the slower growing of the mix.

Dave

google girards nursery ... and peruse their offerings ...

a couple that dave shows.. are not going to be found easily.. so you would be better off looking at stuff offered [and asking our opinion about those] ... rather than getting wound up about something you cant buy, easily ...

there is an older post by will .. firefighter.. about various mail order houses .... many are not going to be found locally nor at the bigboxstore ...

look at each of daves pix.. there is no upright leader ... [or if there was one.. dave took it out..] ... so as to maintain its smaller 'look' ....

now look at each pic .. and using the 3.5 inch label as a scale ..... then you can predict how much it will grow per season ... and that growth rate .. is what keep them small ...

all size estimates are at 10 years... so if it grows one foot per year.. in 10 years .. it will be 10 feet.. in 20 years.. 20 feet.. etc ....

half all that if it has a 6 inch growth rate.. etc ...

in daves pix i see 3 and 6 inch growth rates .. and that is what is important..

link below to conifer intro ..

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link