Gaines, Oddly enough, Will Blozan and I were e-mailing back and forth discussing Norway Spruce this afternoon. They are among the most beautiful of conifers. I intend to measure some in the near future in the Bent Creek Experimental Forest here in WNC. I read somewhere that some of these were planted back in the late 1920s. They probably aren't giants but they have had a bit of time to grow and some may be present that are over 100 feet tall.
http://www.nativetreesociety.org/fieldtrips/north_carolina/20090104-norwayspruce/norway_spruce_nc.htm http://www.nativetreesociety.org/worldtrees/europe/20081221-norwayspruce/big_norway_spruces.htm James P. On Jan 3, 4:14 pm, spruce <[email protected]> wrote: > Tree lovers: > > Forgive me if I am treading on forbidden territory, but I am a > lover of Norway spruce. These trees can grow very tall. In Europe > they are reported to grow as much as 215 feet. Dr. John Genys, > Professor Emeritus, U of MD, with whom whom I have had some good > discussions about Norway spruce, is a native of Lithuania, and has had > a long standing interest in Norway spruce. He sees no reason why they > should not grow as tall here, in favorable spots and with the right > genetic strain, as in Europe. > > Norway spruce is naturalized in a wide area of the northeast and > northern midwest. It reproduces itself, but not in a way as to be a > problematic invasive exotic. > > Could there be any interest in including this species in some way > in the ENTS measurement/recording activities? > > I know of two areas where some very tall Norway spruce trees grow-- > as a rough estimate, maybe up to 140 feet, or a bit more in one case. > Of course these trees were not much planted until the CCC plantings in > the '30s, although one stand, The "Rothkugel," near Bartow in WV, was > planted in 1907. A few were planted during colonial times, but I don't > know of any surviving from that time. The oldest I know of where > probably planted around 1835. If anyone knows of any older plantings I > would be interested. Anyway, since there are few if any plantings > much older than 100 years, the full potential of these trees is not > yet realized on this side of the Atlantic. They are, contrary to some > reports, long lived, pretty much matching the longevity of white pine. > > --Gaines McMartin -- Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected]
