Strategic planning for this Colorado Spruce

[IllinoisSam]

Yesterday I picked up this Colorado spruce at the orange depot, half price clearance, for only $50. It's in a 15 gallon pot and the whole thing probably weighs 60 pounds. The trunk comes out of the pot at a 45 degree angle, then has a nice curve to the top. This is probably why it wasn't sold for normal landscaping.

This is my first foray into Blue Spruce and I want to get the timing right. Looking around on BN it seems the consensus is to prune in the early fall, and repot in the early spring. Is this right? So, I am wondering, which should I do first? Leave it alone until Spring and repot, perhaps into a box (Bjorn says keep 20% of original soil)? Then in early fall 2025 do the initial pruning?

Or, could I do the initial pruning this fall , then repot in the spring? Or, would that be too much stress? I appreciate your input.

Thanks.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

I have no experience with CBS but my other spruces like repotting in spring.
As for the cutting parts off, there is always a trade off to consider. Here's my thought process:
A) if you cut off a bunch this year, there is less water moving around when you repot, so the chance of losing branches due to root damage is limited. However, if you do lose branches, you will lose the ones you wanted to keep for the design.
B) if you leave a bunch this year, the plant has more water moving around during the repot, which enforces new growth and speeds up recovery, but as a risk factor this could lead to random branches dying, forcing you to use whatever is left for the final design.

I think there is no clear answer as to what the best road forwards is. Either way is risky, but both have to be done at some point. I'm a "lets rip the bandage off and go for it" kind of person. So I would say cut this year and repot in spring. But I have lost a spruce (out of 6) this way.

I trust Bjorns advise on colorado blue spruce, so I would indeed leave parts of the original soil. Half bare rooting is a good technique for conifers sitting in clay or dirt.

 

[IllinoisSam]

I have no experience with CBS but my other spruces like repotting in spring.
As for the cutting parts off, there is always a trade off to consider. Here's my thought process:
A) if you cut off a bunch this year, there is less water moving around when you repot, so the chance of losing branches due to root damage is limited. However, if you do lose branches, you will lose the ones you wanted to keep for the design.
B) if you leave a bunch this year, the plant has more water moving around during the repot, which enforces new growth and speeds up recovery, but as a risk factor this could lead to random branches dying, forcing you to use whatever is left for the final design.

I think there is no clear answer as to what the best road forwards is. Either way is risky, but both have to be done at some point. I'm a "lets rip the bandage off and go for it" kind of person. So I would say cut this year and repot in spring. But I have lost a spruce (out of 6) this way.

I trust Bjorns advise on colorado blue spruce, so I would indeed leave parts of the original soil. Half bare rooting is a good technique for conifers sitting in clay or dirt.

Thank you. Lots to think about.

I just noticed that there is a burlap wrapped root ball, sitting within the plastic pot. Looks like it's been there quite a while, for whatever that's worth.

 

[Colorado]

I would build a box for it, repot it in spring 2025 as the buds are swelling, and then let it recover all year with heavy fertilization. Definitely do not bare root it. I’d use pumice for the substrate.

Then you can start working on the foliage in 2026.

Just my 2 cents. Have fun! Love Colorado Blue Spruce. Great species!