Picea engelmannii

Picea engelmannii (Engelmann Spruce) is a species of spruce native to western North America, from central British Columbia and southwest Alberta, southwest to northern California and southeast to Arizona and New Mexico; there are also two isolated populations in northern Mexico. It is mostly a high altitude mountain tree, growing at 900-3650 meter altitude, rarely lower in the northwest of the range; in many areas it reaches the alpine tree line. It is a medium-sized to large evergreen tree growing to 25-40 meter tall, exceptionally to 65 meter tall, and with a trunk diameter of up to 1.5 meter. The bark is thin and scaly, flaking off in small circular plates 5-10 centimeter across. The crown is narrow conic in young trees, becoming cylindric in older trees. The shoots are buff-brown to orange-brown, usually densely hairy, and with prominent pulvini. The leaves are needle-like, 15-30 millimeter long, rhombic in cross-section, waxy pale blue-green above with several thin lines of stomata, and blue-white below with two broad bands of stomata.