the blueness is a waxy coating ....

after initial budding.. it is its brightest color ... immediately starting to dull.... based on heat ... rain ... heavy rain during heat ... and winter ...

they are all dull in spring ... how dull they are.. is a function of how hard all the above was on them ..

plus .. for yours.. throw in excessive manual handling in the process of getting it to your garden ...

some varieties are named.. due to their ability to 'hold' the blueness' over the course of the year ... such as hoopsi, thomsen and some others ...

you have an old workhorse .. a very nice plant.. been around for forever ... it is not going to be all that intense of a blue.. compared to others famed for such blue ...

once they bud out... you will forget about the dullness ... especially in a year or two.. once it gets fully established ...

once the wax is gone.. thats it for that year ... it will not mutate into some all green plant ...

the globosa form .. to me.. indicates that you have a grafted plant ... i dont THINK they would be seedlings ... due to the replication of the form ....

ergo ... they should all be the same ... yours.. upon becoming established .. should perform ... just like all the other ones you see around town ....

try to relax.. and give it some time to get moving.. i think you will be pleased with it.. if you can let it do its own thing ...

there are hundreds of named varieties of picea pungens cultivars .... if you are so inclined.. we will welcome you to the collectors corner.... its spring.. and lots of pix are starting to roll in.. visit the conifer forum often.. and start making lists ... but be aware ... some are very hard to come by ... and the hunt is half the fun

good luck

ken

"Are there specific cultivars of this plant that are more blue".

Yes, I see them both both ways. I alway look for the cultivars that are blue clear to the center. 'Hoopsii' is another cultivar that falls into this category.

The one in the photo is blue clear to the center all year long and of course the most preferred one to have.

Dave Picea pungens 'Glauca Globosa'
{{gwi:735717}}

"A number of years after the introduction of 'R. H. Montgomery' a "new" dwarf blue spruce appeared in America. Introduced by the Dutch as Picea pungens 'Glauca Globosa', it soon became a very popular plant in the nursery trade. Unfortunately its origin is shrouded in some mystery. Supposedly 'Glauca Globosa' originated as a seedling at a Dutch Nursery in 1935. However, no one can trace it to a particular nursery, since the original plant had never been recorded. It appeared in the nursery trade in Holland after 'R.H. Montgomery' was named, and Layne Ziegenfuss found a specimen of 'Glauca Globosa' in a private estate that was accessioned in 1934. A core sample of the trunk verified that date. Today that plant would be 30 to 35 feet tall. Picea pungens 'Glauca Globosa' is indistinguishable from 'R.H. Montgomery' in growth habit. I have been told that the difference between the two is in the number of bud scales of a mature bud"

Here is a link that might be useful: DWARF COLORADO SPRUCES

But why stop there with the quote?

"....Those of us "in the know" must consider any ÂGlauca Globosa as a cultivariant unless the plant can be certified as possessing some characteristic other than growth habit or foliage that distinguishes it from ÂR.H. MontgomeryÂ, and that characteristic has to be traceable back to the oldest labeled ÂGlauca Globosa that can be located."

I saw a really nice all blue one at home depot a while back ... for around $46 ... is that a good price for a pretty good sized one? I've seen them at some local nurserys locally for 2-3 times that. I didn't know about looking to see if they were blue all the way ... makes sense. You learn something every day on these boards.

the arguments being presented are very esoteric to the facts given ...

the tree changes color over the season ... THEY ALL DO ... to some extent or another ...

they can not verify how it was handled by the wholesaler... nor the shipper.. nor anything that happened to it prior to the day they got her hands on it ... and all that would or could affect the color of the OLD NEEDLES ...

it may have even been sprayed with chemicals in preparation for sale ... which would add to the dullness of its current state ..

add transplant..

add winter .. of which we have no facts provided .. maybe it was as bad as my winter.. all my pungens look like carp this season ... prior to bud break ...

and all you can be left with .. is the fact that they are going to have to grow the thing for another year or two ... overcome transplant.. and perhaps have a milder winter..

to see how it all washes out ...

i will bet the usual shiny penny ... that it will become a favored plant ... if the owner can just give it some time to overcome their preconceptions of what it should look like right now ...

if they are not satisfied in two years... then they can secure a better named cultivar... or a better version of this one.. but i am betting... they will be happy with this one..

good luck

ken

Ken and all,

Go to the ACS database. The 'Globosa' I posted in this thread is the same one in the ACS data base with photo taken in October 2006.

The one in this thread is showing new growth this Spring and will turn a more vivid blue as new growth hardens off probably in the next month.

Buying in the Spring when conifer is in the process new growth is not the time to buy especially the blue ones because of color transition that will take place.

Dave