Ivar Leidus · CC BY-SA 3.0 ee
Norway spruce
Tree·Picea abies
Full sun
Sun
Medium
Water
Well-drained soil
Drainage
Zones 2–7
Hardiness
Norway spruce (Picea abies) is a tree. It grows best in full sun and has moderate water needs. It grows well with silver birch.
Through the year
GrowingFlowering
Works well with
from wiki dataWHAT IT NEEDS
Wants full sun
Needs moderate water
Needs well-drained soil
Prefers soil pH 4–5
Show moreShow less
Prefers loam, sand, clay soil
Struggles in compacted soil
Draws up potassium, calcium from deep in the soil
Adds a lot of organic matter to the soil
Partners with mycorrhizal fungi to boost nutrient uptake
WHAT IT GIVES
Gives shade (dense)
Gives wind shelter (high)
Gives leaf litter (high)
Gives organic matter (high)
Gives habitat (wildlife and birds)
Gives timber (high)
Gives oxygen (high)
Provides potassium
Provides calcium
Shelters birds
Shelters mammals
HOW IT GROWS
SIZE & SPACING
Canopy tree
Height3000–6000 cm
Spacing900 cm (min 600 cm)
Root depthDeep
Width600–1200 cm
Width figures are rough estimates, the most variable measurement in our data.
AI estimate · accuracy improves as growers contribute corrections.
HOW TO PROPAGATE
Propagate by seed, cuttings
Difficulty
Establishes in about 3 yr
Self-seeds a little on its own
Where this comes from
Parsed4 Oct 2026
ConfidenceNot recorded
Photograph Ivar Leidus · CC BY-SA 3.0 ee