LOOKS GREAT! I really like Picea Pungens 'Weirdo'... where did you find this?

I must ask, what is the fence for? Just wondering if it was for deer or not because it looks like conifers are on both sides.

Hi Matt, that's a nice collection of needle conifers!
You have a nice collection of Picea pungens cultivars.

I put a quiestionmark at your Picea pungens 'Spring Ghost' wich does have white new Spring growth.
I don't see this at your one...

The new growth on your 'Skylands' is stunning.
Are your bigger one's which were above the snow heavy damaged/
What was the lowest temperature in Celcius at your place?

I also put a quiestionmark at your Abies concolor 'Watezii' because the true one does have a creamy white Spring colour which your's doesn't snow here.
'Watezii' must bin written as 'Wattezii'
I think your's what should be a 'Wattezii Prostrata' which derives as a grafted sidebranch of the 'Watezii' and should also have the creamy white colour in Spring, but your's don't.
The true name for your plant is Abies concolor 'Violacea Prostrate' which derived as a sidebranch of the 'Violacea'...

Picea pungens 'Weirdo'
Must bin written as 'Teton Weirdo'
It's found in the wild by Jerry Morris.
I never came across this one in the trade.
Nate, do you also have this one in your collection?

Thanks for showing us these pics!

Thanks for the naming help, Edwin- I made note in my database their true names.
I bought the Picea pungens "Spring Ghost" from Don Howse last summer. What do you think it could actually be?

My other Skylands' bottom 3 feet looks great but the top just has a few new buds with everything else quite brown. The lowest two temperatures recorded this winter was -23 F (-30 C) one night and -19 F (-28 C) another night. Other than those nights it rarely got below -10 F this winter.

Rick, "Teton Weirdo" was sent to me by mistake from Girard's two years ago. I was pleasantly surprised when I opened its box. It wanted to crawl around on the ground so I staked it up. This spring I removed the stake and now it has a pretty "weird" look to it.

The fence is around my fruit orchard. There was a 15' by 25' space in my orchard that was relatively empty so I am beginning to fill it with conifers as I run out of room in other places.

-Matt

Very nice, Matt, thanks for posting them. I agree, that 'Skylands' is just a glowin'. Are you around Point somewhere?

Edwin, I have a 'Wattezii Prostrata' from Porterhowse that had light colored new growth and was just like Matt's in a matter of 2-3 days.

tj

super.. thx for the pix...

find my post on spring ghost.. the real one is NOT LAME ...

and i doubt yours is SG ... its probably just plain old.. understock ...

i got weirdo from girards also ... i just dont know if joy is right to suggest a name change.. can he produce a picture ???? not saying he is wrong.. just wondering if girards might have its own plant under the name 'weirdo' ... its not listed on the webvsite any more ... hmmmmm

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: made it easy for you ....

Thanks for showing your collection. I like Picea pungens 'Straw'.

I too like 'Straw'. I don't think I've ever seen that varietal before.

mark

Hi Edwin,

many years ago I got the same plant like Matts as ' Wattezii Prostrata' . No creamy white Spring colour. I read it in literature, but mine didn't show it. The plant came from esveld.
Maybe a lot of plants were sold under wrong name.
So I think this was ' Violacea Prostate', too

Wolfgang

Matt, are the old needles of your "fake" 'Spring Ghost' yellow of colour?
I can't see this clear at your pic...

You're very lucky that you received that 'Teton Weirdo' by mistake, I think you're one of a few that have that one in a collection, be very proud of it! :0)

Tommy, was the colour of your 'Wattezii Prostrata' in Spring?
Was it a light grey blue (like Matt's) or a creamy white?

Mark, a while ago Dax showed us very nice pics of the 'Straw'.
Hit the link to see these and enjoy ;0)

Here is a link that might be useful: Picea pungens cultivars parade

Wolfgang, I never came across a true 'Wattezii Prostrata', all the one's I saw were in realy the 'Violacea Prostrate' which derives as a grafted side branch of a 'Violacea'.
The same thing happend with the Abies amabilis 'Spreading Star' which arose as a side branch propagation of the species Abies amabilis...

I'd didn't think Abies lasiocarpa var. arizonica would survive in zone 4 or alot of the conifers that you have for that matter.

You must have a nice cove in the woods there! Thanks for sharing the pics!

Thanks for the comments guys. I live in the middle of an old Pinus resinosa plantation with heavy Pinus strobus undergrowth- it forms a great microclimate although I live a few miles north of Stevens Point.

Edwin, the older needles on the "Spring Ghost" are a dull yellow/creamy cast over the grey blue.

My "Wattezii Prostrata" does NOT flush white/cream at first, its the color pictured the entire time....I got that plant too from Don Howse.

Thanks again,
Matt

Edwin- Mine was not creamy white. More of a very light powder blue.

tj

Then you both have the 'Violacea Prostrate'...

Matt, your "fake" 'Spring Ghost' reminds me to a Picea pungens cultivar pic Will once showed, that plants did also have a flat growing habit with yellowish needles with new blue green new growth...

Edwin, every time I was surprised when I saw in the book "Conifers" from Van Gelderen and Van Hoey Smith the Wattezzi, with this creamy-yellow new growth and beside the Wattezii Prostrate really different. Maybe this is not the right pic, too. And it is ' Violacea Prostrate'.

Wolfgang

You're completely right Wolfgang, this situation is never possible, the one at that pic is also a 'Violacea Prostrate'.
The thing is that the late Dick van Hoey-Smith and Cor van Gelderen aren't true conifer specialists, they have a good basic knowledge about these plants but took all the info at name tags for credit just like most people will do...
Remember, there are only a hand full conifer specialists in the whole world ;0)

Below is a link to Don Howse's plant. He describes it like this:

"I received this plant with the name 'Wattezii Prostrata', but as can be seen in the photo it did not remain so, and became an upright silvery-blue selection of Colorado White Fir. It is stunning and has nice spreading branches. I am sure with pruning it could have been maintained as a prostrate habit, but I find that all I grow tend to be upright and tree-like."

Almost looks like 'Violacea' when I compare pix.

tj

Here is a link that might be useful: Don's plant

Yep, his plant at the pic is nothing else then the 'Violacea'.
The thing is that grafted side branches of it will remain flat for a while untill a leader appaer.
When it's flat as a young plant, or the appaering leader will be cut off, it's the 'Violacea Prostrate'.
If the leader will not be cut out and this plant will outgrow from a flat grower till a tree form, then there will a name changing from 'Violacea Prostrate' till 'Violacea'.
This is realy something, don't you think? :o)

It's the same way with the Cedrus deodara 'Golden Horizon':
It's a grafted side branch of the Cedrus deodara 'Aurea'.
When flat, it's a 'Golden Horizon'.
When a leader appaer and the plant will grow into a tree form, then it's an 'Aurea' again...

Hey Edwin,
I think you're talking about Picea pungens "Wisconsin Cream" when you mentioned my fake "Spring Ghost" resembles a picture of Will's plant that also had a flat growing habit with yellowish needles with new blue green new growth...which is interesting because I also have a P. pungens "Wisconsin Cream" and it looks identical to my "Spring Ghost".

Hey Matt, I think we solved another case, up to the next one! :0)

coniferjoy - here is a photo (taken today, after first flush of growth but the first flush did not look markedly different than what you see in the photo) of what I bought as A. concolor 'Watezii Prostrata'. The growth is not 'white', it is light green and I would not stretch it to 'white'. Does this then look like 'Violacea Prostrate' to you? From what I've read above, that's what I am guessing.
Thx -
Sara