Finally found a good legal collecting spot for spruce!

[Tycoss]

These spruce are showing tons of growth and good colour for trees just collected last year
When I last checked on the area they were collected from, I was very surprised at the difference in health. The wild ones are much more sparse and yellowish.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

It's amazing how a little fertilizer and regular watering will change a tree. They look really healthy this year.

 

[Jorgens86]

Niceeeee

 

[River's Edge]

These spruce are showing tons of growth and good colour for trees just collected last year View attachment 306789View attachment 306790View attachment 306791
When I last checked on the area they were collected from, I was very surprised at the difference in health. The wild ones are much more sparse and yellowish.

Absolutely and that is the main reason collection can be tricky even if all the other aspects fall in line! difficult to gauge the health of weaker looking wild trees. Always rewarding when they respond and flourish after collection. Nice work.

 

[Tycoss]

One of my boys removing some old bark from some jins:

 

[Bob824]

I'm not sure what's more impressive, your spruce finds that seem to be thriving, or having one of your sons helping you out.

Good on you!

 

[Tycoss]

Once they are cleaned up a little, you could see the little tracks of past borer infestation on the jins. I really like all the wispy little jins that all sweep to the left on this tree. They have some cool lines, and I can almost feel/hear the wind that formed them.
Old lines from borers, almost look like tool marks.

 

[Tycoss]

Further back showing all the delicate jins

 

[Tycoss]

Even more contorted branching can be found on the bigger trees from the area these were collected from:

 

[Tycoss]

Two of these trees had their deadwood cleaned and had a bit of wiring done this fall. I did not remove any foliage though, since I plan to start reducing the roots starting next spring. I'm going to wait on the smaller ones until I see more vigour.
This is the larger one from two angles. I'll get better pictures when the lighting is better.
This second one looks nice wired down. The deadwood is interesting, and rather understated.

 

[VERMONT USA !!!!]

Picea Marianna ?

Very well found they look like fire !!

 

[Tycoss]

Picea Marianna ?

Very well found they look like fire !!

Picea Englemanni and Picea Glauca. Specimens of these two species in this area are usually hybrids and tricky to tell apart when stunted with no cones.

 

[Tycoss]

Here are some more pictures without the shadows and a bit better lighting:
Here is the first from a couple of angles:

 

[Tycoss]

The trunk with my hand for scale:

 

[Tycoss]

Here is the second "bunjin type" one:
And here are some deadwood/bark pics:

 

[VERMONT USA !!!!]

Hi!
Very well found there really nice! Bark definitely got something!

 

[Tycoss]

Hi!
Very well found there really nice! Bark definitely got something!

Thanks. The bark gives them such a great sense of age and place. Photos don't do it justice at all. I feel collected trees from wild environments already have a story to tell and wisdom to share. It is just up to me to put them in a context where people will listen.

 

[Shogun610]

amazing spruce

 

[Mike Corazzi]

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This first one looks like a real alpine conifer to me. The long bottom branch and direction of the deadwood indicator to me the influence of wind, but not enough to bend the thing over. Thick plated bark, 3’ tall with a 3” trunk

That tree, as much as any I've seen truly defines "evocative."
I'd go easy on clipping out or jinning.
If leaving bark on dead limbs doesn't invite pests or any other troubles, to me it looks GREAT on the tree.
Possibly remove a few. DAMN few!
I could easily "get lost" in imagination just gazing at it.

GREAT tree!

Words fail me.

 

[Tycoss]

That tree, as much as any I've seen truly defines "evocative."
I'd go easy on clipping out or jinning.
If leaving bark on dead limbs doesn't invite pests or any other troubles, to me it looks GREAT on the tree.
Possibly remove a few. DAMN few!
I could easily "get lost" in imagination just gazing

GREAT tree!

Words fail me.

It really is a special tree. I've spent a lot of time sitting in front of it and examining the ancient bark, subtle movement and windswept jins and imagining it as a hundred foot high tree at the edge of a cliff in the Rockies.
All I can really take credit for is realizing it was beautiful and digging it up.