Herb: Weeping Spruce


Latin name: Picea breweriana


Family: Pinaceae (Pine Family)



Edible parts of Weeping Spruce:

Young male catkins - raw or cooked. Used as a flavouring. Immature female cones - cooked. The central portion, when roasted, is sweet and syrupy. The cones are up to 10cm long. Inner bark - dried, ground into a powder and then used as a thickener in soups etc or added to cereals when making bread. An emergency food when all else fails. Seed - raw. The seed is about 2 - 4mm long and is too small and fiddly to be worthwhile unless you are desperate. A refreshing tea, rich in vitamin C, can be made from the young shoot tips.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Evergreen
Tree

Height:
15 m
(49 feet)

Flowering:
May


Scent:
Scented
Tree

Habitat of the herb:

Usually on dry mountain ridges and peaks near the timber line, forming small groves around 2100 metres, though the best specimens are found in deep moist well-drained soils.

Other uses of Weeping Spruce:

Wood - soft, heavy, close grained. It is valued for its use in the pulp industry to make paper.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - stratification will probably improve germination so sow fresh seed in the autumn in a cold frame if possible. Sow stored seed as early in the year as possible in a cold frame. A position in light shade is probably best. Seed should not be allowed to dry out and should be stored in a cool place. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse or cold frame for their first winter. They can be planted out into their permanent positions in early summer of the following year, or be placed in an outdoor nursery bed for a year or so to increase in size. They might need protection from spring frosts. Cuttings of semi-ripe terminal shoots, 5 - 8cm long, August in a frame. Protect from frost. Forms roots in the spring. Cuttings of mature terminal shoots, 5 - 10cm long, September/October in a cold frame. Takes 12 months. Cuttings of soft to semi-ripe wood, early summer in a frame. Slow but sure.

Cultivation of Weeping Spruce:

Usually on dry mountain ridges and peaks near the timber line, forming small groves around 2100 metres, though the best specimens are found in deep moist well-drained soils.

Medicinal use of the herb:

None known

Known hazards of Picea breweriana:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.