Picea Asperata var. Ponderosa
Big Cone Dragon Spruce
Picea Asperata var. Ponderosa
Type: Needled evergreen Native Range: Western Sichuan Province Zone: 6 to 9 Height: 50.00 to 150.00 feet Spread: 25.00 to 40.00 feet Bloom Time: Non-flowering Bloom Description: Non-flowering Sun: Full sun Water: Medium Maintenance: Low Leaf: Evergreen
This tree appeared ragged and sparse from far away, but as you got closer you could easily see that it was thriving just fine, from the density of its twigs. Although this tree’s name states its the big cone version, I didn’t see any of these so called ‘big cones’ anywhere on the ground or above. The bark on the main tree reminded me of that of red pine, in that it dripped of resin and had a defined scale appearance. This bark scored a 2 out of 3 for its score. The Needles were a bluish green as you got closer, closer to that of a blue spruce. Although soft looking, they were rather hard and spiky, resulting in a danger to touch. check out how spiky the twigs are, rather scary. They get a 2 out of 4 for leaves. For landscape uniqueness, this tree surely gets a high score, for it is native to Chinese river valley mountains, surely a sight to see on the outskirts of Boston. This one seemed perfectly content growing here, so we will award it a 3 out of 4 for uniqueness.
Bark: (1-3) 2
Leaves: (1-4) 2
Landscape uniqueness: (1-3) 3
Total: 7
Like many other larger evergreens researched so far, this tree has tremendous structural abilities, while retaining some lightweight qualities as well. Some sites even say that this wood has been used in early aircraft due to its strength and levity. Another use for this tree is it has been made into railway sleepers as well as furniture. This wood has been grown an cultivated for usage in construction, so it scores very highly at 9 out of 10.
Source:
1. https://conifersociety.org/conifers/picea-asperata/
2. https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/picea-asperata/
3. http://www.mustila.fi/en/plants/picea/asperata

















