Dwarf conifer is a term used to refer to evergreen trees that are genetically programmed to grow slowly and stay small. Specialty conifer is a term that may refer to dwarf evergreens or to trees with unusual growth habits, like weeping spruce or pines, that grow as a ground cover.
Globe Blue Spruce
Picea pungens glauca ‘Globosa’
Height: 3-5′ Spread: 5-6′
Very popular globe-shaped dwarf cultivar of blue spruce. Characteristic pale blue-green foliage and dense branching. Prune out any upright shoots to maintain shape. Stands out in a group planting or as a landscape accent.
Procumbens Colorado Blue Spruce
Picea pungens glauca ‘Procumbens’
Height: 1-2′ Spread: 5-8′
Groundcover evergreen shrug. Spreads out in a low undulation; silvery-blue foliage makes a dramatic statement when allowed to roam over and amongst stones and rock walls.
R H Montgomery Spruce
Picea pungens ‘R. H. Montgomery’
Height: 8-12′ Spread: 6′
True dwarf form of Colorado Blue Spruce with outstanding bright blue color. Forms a globe when young but becomes a broad cone when mature.
Ruby Tear Drops Colorado Spruce
Picea pungens ‘Ruby Tear Drops’
Height: 3′ Spread: 3-4′
Striking dwarf spreader that provides a vibrant color display early in the growing season. Abundant emerging cones are red to magenta, contrasting vividly against teal-Blue foliage generally lasting for at least four weeks, longer in cooler weather. The overall growth structure is squat-irregular to globose.
Sester ‘s Dwarf Blue Spruce
Picea pungens glauca ‘Sester Dwarf’
Height: 6′ Spread: 4′
A slow-growing small variety of Colorado Spruce, with a tight conical form that requires little pruning and standout blue-green foliage. An ideal tree for the yard or lawn.
The Blues Blue Spruce
Picea pungens ‘The Blues’
Height: 6′ Spread: 5′
A strongly weeping spruce whose irregular branching and dramatic drooping make each plant unique. Bright silver-blue to blue-green foliage. A powerful focal point in a rock garden or woodland landscape.
Acrocona Norway Spruce
Picea abies ‘Acrocona’
Height: 15′ Spread: 15′
An irregular upright form of Norway spruce, named for its unusual habit of producing most of its red-purple cones at the end of the new growth (“acro” meaning “at the end”). The tree tends to take on a drooping, spreading shape.
Pusch Dwarf Norway Spruce
Picea abies ‘Pusch’
Height: 2′ Spread: 2′
Dwarf, spreading, globose selection of Norway spruce with layered branching and dark-green needles. Notable for a stunning display of bright red cones in early spring, proving that conifers actually “bloom”. Later in the season, these cones will mature to light brown and remain with the plant until late winter.
Weeping Serbian Spruce
Picea omorika ‘Pendula Bruns’
A large-growing, upright, strictly weeping selection of Serbian spruce with lush silvery, blue-green needles. Creates a very narrow effect in the garden.
Dwarf Serbian Spruce
Picea omorika ‘Nana’
Height: 4-8′ Spread: 4-8′
Young plants will have a uniform, somewhat globose growth habit. Over time they will become densely conical. Foliage is stunning silvery blue-green in color.
Dwarf Oriental Spruce
Picea orientalis ‘Bergman’s Gem’
Height 3-6′ Spread 2-5′
One of the nicest dwarf forms of Oriental spruce with needles that are rich dark green; stems and branching are arching and uniform, and growth is at a reasonably slow rate.
Zafiro Blue Spruce
Picea pungens ‘Zafiro’
Height: 8′ Spread: 6′
Blue, gem-like color combined with a slow rate of growth makes ‘Zafiro’ suited for gardens with limited space. Slower growth and a rounded profile. This compact dwarf tree is an excellent alternative choice to the generic “Dwarf Blue Globe Spruce”.