Reminds me of the cell phone "trees" that show up in the US. Although the tree in your picture doesn't seem to have any "equipment".

Here is a link that might be useful: cell phone towers disguised as trees

Norfolk Island Pine, Araucaria heterophylla. Or it COULD be an antenna trying to imitate a NIP. ;-)

Araucaria heterophylla, or possibly Araucaria columnaris (tho' more likely the former).

Resin

Wouldn't the very tip have SOME green if it were a real tree?

"...would like to know if they can be grown in zone 5".
The next time you go to the grocery store go to the florist section. Ask for Norfolk Island Pine. It must be treated like a houseplant in your area.
Sam

I want to thank you all for your participation.
Like I wrote earlier I thought it may be a fake tree but I did see a lot of them in different areas of the town. I only took a photo of the one but the wife just informed me that one of my cousins that lives there has one growing or standing in his yard. I was not aware of that. Using the photo above I cropped just the top area of the tree and enlarged it to the point where it started to get blurry and I think it may be fake. They must have had a sale on these items at the local outdoor market.

I must say they do appeal to me--maybe it's because their every branch is perfect. It's like they where trimmed with scissors.

I am going with the premises that they are fake and those people that had them in their yards found them attractive as well. It would be way to many phone antennas in one small coastal town.
Thanks again
Lou

"Wouldn't the very tip have SOME green if it were a real tree?"

Looks green to me, tho' it isn't too easy to see in silhouette against the light.

Resin

You may be mistaking it for spruce trees which can look the same to the untrained eye. If you were seeing the during december, they are sold as indoor living christmas trees.

Yep, should be a Norfolk Island pine (Araucaria heterophylla)
They begin to sustain damage at temperatures below 40ºF (4.4ºC) and will die if freezing temperatures come. They are sold at stores sometimes as indoor house plants or as small christmas trees in most of the U.S. where it is too cold outside during the winter.

Look at the picture in the Link below to see how the top can look sometimes on a Norfolk Island pine before a new whorl of branches form:

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:325372}}

treeguy123,
That photo posted on the site you posted looks vey much like the tree in my photo. It's a whole lot closer of a match than any others I have found on the web.

Looks like there is a lot better chance that the tree in my photo above is a real tree.

Thanks
Lou

It reminds me of the movie "Edward Scissorhands". lol

But is Southern Italy warm enough for this tree to be grown outdoors?

Hi esh.
I googled the words Italy plant zone and got a fairly good site (see link below) that kinda told about Italy's zones.
I'm not sure where in Southern Italy they are referring to but coastal Italy is at least zone 10 and some zone 11 there.
I once bought a N.I.P. as a Living Christmas Tree but it might have expired after I gave it away, I don't know if they knew it wasn't hardy outside here.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.virtualitalia.com/articles/garden_zone.shtml

I am the originator of the first thread on this subject
and I can tell you that the trees I saw growing in Italy this past September where growing in a costal town below Salerno which happens to be in zone 10.

I know for a fact that at times in the winter I have seen water freeze on the roads that was running down from the mountains rock face on to the highway. So it does get cold there but it is not a cold that is sustained for a long period of time like here in PA in zone 5 where I live.

So from the info gathered here learning that it most likely is not a fake tree it looks like I can forget trying or wanting to grow one of them in my yard.

I can't keep it indoors because I have to many other type trees growing and wintering over in my home now. Under lights and on windowsills.

I think they make a very nice presentation in a yard - at least the ones I saw in Italy. To bad!!!!
Lou