How Not to Kill a Dwarf Alberta Spruce

I feel like an impostor. Me? Offering commentary on Picea glauca 'Conica', AKA dwarf Alberta spruce tree? Isn't that a bit like a Canadian giving expert advice on the Southern Magnolia?

Nevertheless, I am a gardener in subtropical Alabama, heartiness zone 7b, and I grow three Alberta spruces, two of them for about a dozen years, and I haven't killed them yet. Actually, dwarf Alberta spruces can survive in zone 8, a little farther south of me, but it's iffy.

These lovely dwarfs grow best in zones 3-6. Shaped like perfect little Christmas trees, they are good accent plants that need minimal pruning and are low maintenance if given the right conditions. They grow only two to four inches a year. I grow mine in pots. The two older ones are twenty seven inches tall with a trunk diameter of two inches. Even in the ground and in more suitable climates they can take thirty years or more to grow to twelve feet. 

I did almost kill the two oldest. Once upon a Christmas season I purchased them as decoration for my fireplace mantel. They were so pretty there that I kept them in the house too long, and the middle section of each turned brown. I ended up making topiaries of them. You can read about it in my previous post, A Topiary Tale. The third is several years younger and also is in a pot, but I have maintained its traditional shape.

So, for what it's worth, here is what I have learned about dwarf Alberta spruces and how not to kill them:

1. Plant them in well drained soil. Did I mention that long ago I planted two of them in my native soil, which is red clay? This stuff becomes like sticky plastic when wet and drains poorly. When it dries out, it becomes like concrete. Those two plants were doomed and died the first season. This is why I grow my current ones in pots, in good soil, with a layer of gravel in the bottom.

2. Give them acid soil. I bought potting soil and added peat moss and shredded pine bark mulch to it, which also helps with #1. I also mulch around them with shredded bark.

3. Keep them well watered. This is particularly true in warmer climates and extremely true if grown in pots. I water my pots daily during the hot summer, except when it rains. This is why all three are located on the patio, only a few feet from a water source. Under my conditions they will die if they dry out. Period. But remember #1, they don't like soggy soil!

4. Plant them in full sun to high shade. 

5. Give them an eastern or northern exposure. Avoid planting where harsh winter winds or hot afternoon sun can burn them. Mine are on the north side of the house. 

6. Don't crowd them against other plants or against buildings. They need good air circulation. Their needles will turn brown on the crowded side, and once brown, they will stay that way. If this happens, trim the brown areas, move to a better location and hope for new growth. Crowded conditions also promote spider mites. See #8, below.

7. Use natural fertilizer recommended for evergreens. Apply in spring and again in late summer. Many chemical fertilizers contain the nitrate form of nitrogen, which can harm the plant's roots. I use fish emulsion. I also apply a tablespoon of magnesium sulfate (epsom salts) around the base and water in well.

8.  Browning of needles can be due to spider mites. If you shake a branch over a white piece of paper you may see the tiny moving bugs. DO NOT use horticultural oils or chemical insecticides. Dwarf Alberta spruces are sensitive to oils and many pesticides. You may treat a small infestation by spraying with water, and this is good to do a couple times a week as a prevention. You can also use an insecticidal soap solutiion, once a week for several weeks.  

9. It probably doesn't hurt to sing or talk to them on a regular basis, but avoid petting or handling the foliage, as your plant may respond with brown tips.

10. Minimal pruning should be done with clean, sharp pruners. Once a year is probably enough. I prune mine in spring after new growth has started. 

That's it. If I can keep a dwarf Alberta spruce alive, you can too if you provide the right environment and care. Good luck!

The Underworld of Hellebores

In the fifth century BC, the Greeks laid siege to the city of Kirrha after the Kirrhans attacked religious pilgrims on the road to Delphi. The war dragged on for years, until the Greeks devised a plan to poison Kirrha's water supply with the root of a plant that grew abundantly in a nearby area. The plan worked. Soon the defenders were terribly weakened by diarrhea, and the Greeks were able to march in and slaughter everyone.

The plant was Hellebore: Helle, Greek for killing, Bore, Greek for plant. The plant has had questionable associations and mixed reviews since that time. Witches sometimes used it to conjure up demons, while others planted it beside their doors to ward off evil spirits. It has been used medicinally to treat various ailments, including insanity and depression. The results weren't always good, for the toxic plant sometimes killed the patient. Some historians suspect Alexander the Great succumbed to hellebore poisoning because he was taking it as medication.

Do the beautiful flowers hang their heads in shame? Most hellebores do have nodding flowers, though a few modern hybrids look more outward than downward. Actually, the flowers nod to protect their pollen from rain, sleet, snow, and wind. New strains of hellebores come in rich colors, as well as double and even ruffled blooms, but a person has to work to appreciate their beauty. I can casually walk past a planting of hellebores, and I think they are attractive. But to truly see their charm, one has to explore their underworld:

1.  Get down on hands and knees and lower the head until level with the beauties. If one can stand on one's head, that will help.

2.  Hope the next door neighbor or the meter reader doesn't happen by while one's head is on the ground and rump is in the air.

3. Take photos with a good camera. Shove the lens in amidst the foliage and point toward the flowers. A lot of these shots may be worthless, but there will be some wonderful ones, too. A close-up picture brings out details eyes easily overlook.

Although my hellebores are single, without the frills of some new hybrids, I think they are beautiful. I have already done the inelegant work of photographing them, so here's a few shots that won't cost you your dignity:

Hellebores do best in moist, organic soil. They often thrive under deciduous trees, where they receive sunshine in late winter and early spring when they are blooming, then shade during the warmer summer. They can spread to make a nice ground cover. The leaves are evergreen, but tattered foliage should be trimmed before the plant begins blooming in late winter. Clumps may be dug up and their roots divided, and the plant also can be propagated by seed, though seedlings may not have the same characteristics as the parent plant.