I don't know if this will work -- we recently moved, so our server isn't connected yet and I had to find some way to post this photo other than emailing it. I think it's looking a little better today, but that might be wishful thinking. It's raining outside right now... I don't see any buds, to be honest. Then again, our mulberry only just started budding. I hope this little guy will make it! Here is a link that might be useful: Link to Bruce the Spruce

Mike: Welcome! Yours is a really interesting question, with a lot of information/ideas in it. The first thought I have is that some of the weeping Norway spruces can, and eventually do develop upright leaders. This may, or may not be a problem for what you want to do. I think 'Inversa' is in this category. For some of the others I have found a lot of contradictory information. Apparently some develop leaders only after long training, which may be why some sources say they will always be flat unless staked. I wish I could be of more help on the variety you should choose. As for the spacing, and I am guessing here, if you want to have an effect of curtains hanging down from horizontal lines, you don't want the trees too close together--the visual effect would be broken up too much by the verticals. Maybe 8' apart would be good--you don't want to wait forever for the horizontals to grow out and close the screen. Well, obviously I have never even thought about what you want to do, but the idea is beautiful and fascinating! --Spruce

Anything can be overwintered with protection. Nurseries here do it one of two ways. A grower I know simply puts his pots in cold frames and opens the door on occasion when outside temps become warm. The other keeps everything in a fully closed building (no light) and has a heating/cooling system installed that keeps the plants at a constant 36 degrees F (or some such number just above freezing). Right now for your Spruce all you need to do is plant the whole thing, pot and plant up against the north side of your home and mulch it for the winter. Be sure to water at the time of planting as well. Plant it while it's dormant early next spring at the first sign of bulbs coming up and tease the roots while removing encircling ones. Back to the overwintering/darkness discussion that's taken place, it was recently suggested to me that I use the crawlspace under a deck as a coldframe for storing potted plants (by an arboretum owner). Good luck!!! Dax

From 10' to 4' is pretty radical - sprouting may be weak at first or may not happen at all. Except for certain kinds like yews generally with conifers you never want to cut back beyond the outer shell of foliage, into bare branches - and certainly not into the bare trunk. Now your spruce may only be able to make any kind of a comeback from what foliage is left. The common weeping Norway spruce is 'Reflexa' (sold as 'Pendula') and this bends down to the ground on the outside unless the central stem is kept staked and tied to grow upward. But your main problem now is that your tree has been turned into what it sounds like is basically a stump.