For inexpensive species Phals, check out Oak Hill Gardens. They always have a big selection. But be sure to check out sizes, as a $4 bastianii is a small seedling. You don't need to buy a blooming size plant (price marked with an asterisk), but depending on your level of experience, you can choose one a year or so from blooming. Over the years, I have gotten many of my species Phals from them. Just a bit of information: Phal braceana is a cool-intermediate to cool-grower and will not be happy with 95F summer temps (I keep mine in the air-conditioning during the summer). Phal cochlearis grows on limestone cliffs and likes a more alkaline environment -- I have a few chunks of S. Fla coral rock in the pot with it. Speaking of limestone cliff dwellers, Jay has a good list of Phals. Just do a search of the page for the word "limestone" Here is a link that might be useful: Phals growing on limestone

This set of pictures was fabulous, by the way. Certainly a beautiful plant! I'm glad you figured it out.

Any chance of some pics of non-broom foliage from the tree? The broom needles are so dense, I can't see the shoot between them well. If no pics, can you see if the shoots are glabrous (definitely glauca), or pubescent (engelmannii, or glauca var. albertiana), please? The bark doesn't help a lot, as engelmannii and glauca are similar (as is sitchensis, too). Very surprising a specimen that size hasn't had any cones on - makes me wonder if it could be a sterile, perhaps hybrid, individual (tho' I'm not aware of any spruce hybrids being sterile). Resin

I do wish I had a good photo of my old Chinese fan plam at it's best and before it finally died from being overly rootbound etc. after over ten years of growth, and already in a 21in. pot. One reason, I've NOT replaced it is of course , they can indeed get very big for an indoor situation, and most offered locally are much too crowded with multiples planted per pot, and that's not the best way to grow them. Given more room, some bright light, and allowing some drying between some good soaking, and a little fertilizer, mine went from two in a one gallon pot to the larger of the two having single fronds at least 30in. across in less than ten years, so given some half way decent conditions they aren't slow growing sometimes after the first couple of years. Mine was much treasured , but much too big for a small house like mine, so when it came time to spend at least fifty dollars to repot one plam, I had to pass on that idea, and it went slowly down hill til it died a few years later. At the time of it's death , and examinging the rootball, there was absollutely no soil to be seen in the rootball and nothing but solid roots with the bottom four or more inches of rootball having many feet of twining roots circling the rootball. When it get's that bad , watering and feeding becomes near impossible, and downwards any plant will go when that rootbound.