Spruce

About 35; see text.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Spruce (etym.: from Polish "z Prus" means "from Prussia") refers to trees of the Genus Picea, a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from 20-60 (-95) m tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical form. The needles, or leaves, of spruce trees are attached singly to the branches in a spiral fashion, each needle on a small peg-like structure called a pulvinus. The needles are shed when 4-10 years old, leaving the branches rough with the retained pulvini (an easy means of distinguishing them from other similar genera, where the branches are fairly smooth).

Related Topics:
Tree - Coniferous - Evergreen - Pinaceae - Temperate - Boreal - Conical

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~