How to Plant and Care for a Norway Spruce

The Norway spruce (Picea abies) is the workhorse evergreen of Pennsylvania yards. It is not native, but it has been planted here for well over a century, and for practical reasons: it grows 2 to 3 feet a year while young, shrugs off our winters, costs little at the nursery, and makes one of the best windbreaks you can grow. Here is how to plant one and keep it healthy.

Norway Spruce Basics

Expect a landscape tree of 40 to 60 feet at maturity with a spread of 25 to 30 feet, and taller specimens where conditions are ideal. Older trees develop the species’ signature look: upswept main branches draped with hanging branchlets. The cones are 4 to 6 inches long, the largest of any spruce. It is hardy in USDA zones 3 through 7, which covers Central PA with room to spare, and unlike most fast starters it is long-lived. A Norway spruce planted today will outlast the person who plants it.

Picking the Spot

Full sun, meaning six hours or more a day. Moist, well-drained soil is ideal, though it tolerates most soil types and pH ranges found in this area. What it will not tolerate is a swamp or a drought-baked bank.

The mistake that matters most is planted-too-close. A tree that spreads 25 to 30 feet needs to sit at least 15 feet from the house, the property line, and any driveway you want to keep shaded rather than swallowed. Check for overhead lines before you dig, because a 50-foot evergreen and a service wire eventually meet.

Planting

Spring and early fall are the planting windows. Dig the hole two to three times as wide as the root ball but no deeper. The root flare, where the trunk widens into the roots, should sit right at ground level. Planting deep is the most common way people kill a spruce slowly. Backfill with the native soil you dug out, water thoroughly to settle it, and spread 2 to 3 inches of mulch out to the drip line, keeping it off the trunk itself. Piled-up mulch invites root rot.

Water deeply once a week for the first two growing seasons. After that the tree mostly fends for itself except in real drought. Our guide to watering your landscape correctly covers how to check whether you’re actually getting water down to the roots.

Feeding and Seasonal Care

Established Norway spruces rarely need fertilizer in decent soil. If growth is weak and pale, a soil test beats guessing. One thing that alarms new owners every fall: the oldest needles, the ones closest to the trunk, turn brown and drop. That is normal shed, not disease. Worry when this year’s needles at the branch tips brown, not the interior ones.

Pruning

The best pruning plan for a Norway spruce is mostly leaving it alone. Remove dead or broken branches whenever you see them, and do any shaping in late winter while the tree is dormant. Our early spring pruning guide covers timing. Two rules specific to spruces: never cut back into bare old wood, because it will not sprout again and the hole you make is permanent, and keep a single leader at the top. If the leader is damaged, train the strongest nearby shoot upward to replace it. For the broader case for staying on top of this, see our eight reasons to prune.

Pests and Problems in PA

Spruce spider mites do their damage in the cool weeks of spring and fall, stippling needles until they bronze. Our spider mite guide covers identification and treatment. Bagworms build their cone-shaped bags in summer; pick them off by hand in fall and winter before the eggs hatch. White pine weevil, despite the name, likes spruce leaders too. If the top shoot wilts into a shepherd’s crook in early summer, prune it out below the damage and burn or bag it.

The disease to know is cytospora canker, which shows up on older or stressed trees as dying lower branches with white resin patches. There is no cure. Prune out affected limbs in dry weather and keep the tree unstressed with water in droughts, which is the real prevention.

The Windbreak Question

For a windbreak or screen, set trees 12 to 15 feet apart in a row. They will look sparse for the first few years and then close ranks for the next fifty. It is the cheapest permanent fence you can buy, as long as you give it the one thing it demands: room to be a big tree, because a big tree is what you are planting.