UT Gardens' Plant of the Month for June 2007:

Skyland's Oriental Spruce

Submitted by James Newburn

Picea orientalis ‘Skyland’s’ (or Skylands) Oriental Spruce is striking for its wonderful form and brilliant color. However, this plant should be called an everyellow rather than an evergreen!

The color of the Skylands spruce is what is so eye–catching. The bright yellow foliage stays year–round and is brightest in the spring. As summer progresses it becomes more golden yellow, and as it gets older some of the interior lower branches that are shaded become slightly green, but still the predominant color is yellow. At maturity it will also produce wonderfully contrasting purple–brown cones.

Also, this spruce is ideal for those who have smaller properties. The Skylands spruce has a very conical, narrow form that in 10 years reaches only about 10 feet tall and 4 feet wide. This is about one–tenth the size of the true species, which keeps it well in proportion in the smaller garden. It also has nice sturdy branches with fine, spiky needles that give it a stately look.

This spruce grows in full sun, but in our area it will also tolerate partial shade, although this may diminish the brilliance of the color. Young saplings might need protection from winter sun and wind burn, but once established this should become less of a problem. Skylands prefers moist but well drained neutral to slightly acidic soil, and as with other landscape plants it should have a layer of mulch to cool the soil, control weeds and help retain moisture.

This plant was originally found on Skylands Farm in New Jersey, hence its name. The specimen in the UT Gardens in Knoxville came from Gumtree Nursery in Nashville , but this selection is widely available locally and from Web sources such as Iseli Nursery and Stanley and Sons.

You can’t miss the eye–catching brilliance of this great conifer, and with its wonderful size, shape, and color it will “spruce” up any garden.

James Newburn is curator of the University of Tennessee Gardens in Knoxville. The UT Gardens are a project of the Tennessee Agricultural Experiment Station. The original gardens are located in Knoxville on Neyland Drive . Additional gardens are located in Jackson on Airways Blvd. Admission is free, and the Gardens are open to the public seven days a week during daylight hours.

Contact:

Patricia C. McDaniels, (865) 974-7141