Dave--(or anyone else?): I am really confused by these "weeping" Norway spruce cultivars. You show one picture of a 'Reflexa' that was not staked but is growing erect, then another picture of the same kind of tree that had to be staked. So, does this tree grow erect sometimes, and not all the time? As for the P. abies 'Frohburg' I find confusing statements. You say it needs to be staked or it will grow prostrate. Iseli nursery, and a couple of other places on-line, says it is an upright grower. Elsewhere I see a cultivar name P. abies 'Frohburg Prostrata,' with the 'Prostrata' sugggesting a flopping tree. So what am I supposed to think? Now in the Gotelli collection at the National Arboretum in DC they have two P. abies 'Inversa' trees. Both of these have picturesque irregular habits, but they are definately not prostrate. One, or I think both, have multiple erect trunks growing upright with severely pendulous side branches. I would like to grow one of these, but several sources say they will not grow upright. I have also seen another P. abies 'Inversa,' or so it is labelled, in the courtyard of the Winterthur museum in Delaware. This tree is also growing upright without any staking. And there is another similar tree growing prominently in the National Memorial Park in Fairfax, VA, but this tree has no label at all. I don't know if you have seen my postings in the trees forum under the topic "Large Willow" where I comment on the rampant confusion about golden weeping willows, but I may be even more confused and frustrated in trying to get information about the growth habit of these so-called weeping varieties of NS. I want to grow one or more, but what do I buy? And from whom? Are those I saw labelled 'Inversa' actually something that I can buy as 'Inversa," or is that an incorrect name? And this 'Frohburg' thing? Is there a 'Frohburg' that grows erect, and then another that is 'Frohburg Prostrata' that must always be staked--or which is more properly meant to grow along the ground. Of course, I assume that any of these that are potentially erect growers probably must be staked for a time, but from what I have seen with my own eyes (at the Nat Arb, and at Winterthur, and at the Nat Mem Park), at least one, and maybe more than one of these cultivars, can grow on their own after a period of time being staked, in at least some irregular erect fashion. So, is 'Inversa' one of these? Or 'Frohburg' or what? I have seen them, want one, but what one, or ones is/are it/they?? H E L P!! this is driving me nuts!! --Spruce

hot spit... did you followed every post we ever wrote on how to do it right .. crikey ... beautiful ... but you couldnt help yourself with the 'nure eh ... lol ... but that isnt the issue ... a the boy said... dig .. with a hand trowel.. 6 to 8 inche holes.. on the periphery of the ball you plnated... AND FIND OUT WHATS GOING ON DOWN THERE ... its either too wet.. or too dry ... adjust accordingly ... but do let us know ... my spring was 4 to 6 weeks late this year.. just south of ann arbor... EVERYTHING was late ... so your story doesnt surprise me ... but that story eneded.. for spruce.. about the first week or two of june .... mid to late july is way off ... the boy is probably right.. but you wont know about the root slaughter, if any .. until it dies and you bare root it and find out ... finally.. it is not uncommon ... for them to show the result of the digging.. shipping and planting stresses.. when the real heat of the midwest hits in late july/august ... double finally ... there is a phase. just after bud break.. when the growth is so huge.. so fast.. that the plant appears droopy ... and it takes a few weeks for the plant to pump it up ... triple finally.. give us a pic ... you are making us guess... at best ... ken ps: we could do you a lot better than a bigboxstore green plain old spruce.. if you asked ... mail order for fall.. will solve all your problems ... lol

Well, I am a Norway spruce "nut," and have seen lots of them in all kinds of conditions, but for this one I can't really imagine what you are describing. Any chance of a picture? Only two things seem like possibilities to me. First, any chance this is one of the weeping varieties of Norway spruce that unless staked will bend over and grow downwards? When these are bought in the spring they often have erect leaders, then when they start to grow the first growing season, the leader will begin to bend over. The side branches generally grow downwards, with the tips of the new growth having a turn outwards as if they want to grow upright, but they never do. The other possibility is what you are seeing is just the weeping of secondary branches, which is natural to a lot of Norway spruce trees. But if this is the case, the main branches should, perhaps, be angled downwards just a little, and then as they go away from the tree, have a "sweep," a curve outward and upwards towards the ends of the branches. The branchlets that grow from the sides of the main branches can droop or hang downwards. This is a natural Norway spruce growth form. If the tree were sick, the needles would be falling off. A Norway spruce tree is not going to have its branches "wilt" and droop downwards, even if it is dying. They are woody branches and will hold their position. Actually, a NS branch is more likely to curve upwards as it dies. Once in a while I will see a NS with branches with the sweep I describe above, but then the ends of each branch, perhaps involving two years worth of growth, will have a bit of a droop. This is also a natural variation of some NS trees. --Spruce

We had about 2" of rain this past Friday and Saturday, and the last 2 days have been sunny and about 65 degrees. The area I was planning on planting is still mucky when I stick a shovel down. This is only my second spring on this property, so I'm still learning about the ground I got. I'm going to watch this area for a few days, see how long it takes the ground to drain and dry up a little. I may be fighting a losing battle trying to plant any conifer in this area. If I do a mound, it's going to be a hand made mound, so not that big. Unless someone has a recommendation for a conifer that can handle wet ground for half the year.