12 year old post, and still no good answers. Wow. OK, so reviving this for those who follow. I live in an area known for Blue Spruce trees (Colorado). Not offering expert advice here, but I will provide some observations from 50 years of living with these trees: 1) We plant Blue Spruce trees very close to houses in this area. By "very", I mean a few feet from the house. In 50 years of living here, I've never heard of anybody having foundation problems due to a spruce tree being too close (other trees, yes). Not saying it's not possible, but 10 feet away is not going to be a problem. 2) Healthy Blue Spruce trees don't come crashing down, nor do they shed big limbs. Even very heavy spring snow tends to damage other trees, while the spruce trees weather it just fine. Unhealthy / dying trees should be taken down. 3) In mountain communities, people build houses surrounded by spruce and pine trees -- again often just feet from their houses. And again, people are not chopping down these trees due to fear of foundation problems. Some smart folks do start felling them for fire mitigation, but that is a different subject. 4) We personally have 2 Blue Spruce trees right next to our house, both of which were planted many years before we moved in. They are at least 25 years old, towering above our house. No foundation or basement damage has occurred from these mature trees. Keeping the gutters clean is a pain, and we have to be sure limbs are kept off the roof to prevent damage to shingles. 5) Blue Spruce trees do get big -- so if you don't want a big tree in your yard they are not for you. 6) Grass under the tree will typically die out or be very thin, unless it is a kind that tolerates shade and soil conditions created by the trees. However, some ground covers (like vinca minor) will thrive and are a nice compliment.

key word.. NEW YARDS ... this is what happens when a BUILDER .. on a budget.. is making landscape decisions ... ornamental pears .. horrible plants .. even the named varieties ... norway maples.. the ABSOLUTE worst of the maple clan ... horrible ... horrible trees ... the most invasive weed on the face of the earth .. grass.. cant even grow under them ... and though i love picea pungens.. frankly.. they can easily be 20 to 40 feet wide .... and 40 to 80 feet tall ... not really a plant for suburbia... my guess.. regarding the first two .. bargain plants based on reduced demand.. led to a bargain price in bulk ... and pungens are really cheap ... always go with a diverse landscape .... so if some plague comes along.. and wipes out one of something... its not the one you choose .... every plant has an upside and a downside ... the downside of pungens.. is their meanness ... they are not forgiving when you brush against them ... they will cut you man .... ken

The area is so shaded that grass will not grow ==>>> if grass wont grown... NOTHING WILL THRIVE... crickey its the number one invasive.. i will grow in cracks in ashplalt weed.. lol ... if it wont grow.. give up ... then on top of that .... under my mature conifers... i am talking 30 to 40 foot trees.. its a desert ... and i dont think you will ever be able to apply enough water for any hosta.. other than the driveway workhorses ... [new post if you want that list] you said: So would I be correct in thinking that it is probably due to water competition from the tree roots? ==>>. bingo and a bango... you know much more than you are admitting to yourself ... and dont even get me going on cottonwood ... water suckers supreme ... and if they are close.... say the height of the tree ... i doubt you will ever water enough to overcome them and the conifers ... except for the above ... ken

Reply to all: Thank all of you for taking the time to help me. Please forgive my wordy response as I try to provide you with the best info I can. I have added pictures, which includes one of the original pots next to my replacement tubs for your comparison and shows the location where the trees will summer and perhaps winter, and what I called a hand cultivator. Also, a closeup of the tree with the driest needles. Placing them under the fir trees provides them cooling shade, there is morning sun exposure and the vinca does a wonderful job of keeping their roots cool. Unfortunately I had repotted before I decided to ask for advice as generally I am pretty competent with trees so I have no pictures of the root balls. I purchased the trees on the spur of the moment from a Walmart sale table. They were pretty dry, but I thought it would be worth a try to save them (especially since Baby Blue Spruces were on my wish list). Right upfront I made two mistakes, one was looking at the needle color and ignoring their feel; and two, I did not check the root ball (just never thought to). When I got home I put them where they are now, under the Douglas firs, and I spent a good 20-30 minutes watering each one but was really struggling to get them wet. I am a little distracted as my husband and I are full time ranchers in southeast Washington state and we have our hands full with the ranch as well as the current heat situation, so I just mindlessly struggled for a few days trying to get the get the pots moist. After a couple of days, I decided to try the moisture meter and found I could not insert the prongs. So I finally took the time to really look at the pot from the top and through the drainage holes and discovered that the roots were just a single solid mass. It was still a couple of days before I could get the necessary tubs to put them in. I had hoped I could just gently loosen the roots, spread them a bit and put them in the tubs (I drilled plenty of good sized drainage holes) with a potting soil mix. But when I pulled them from their small pots the roots were so tightly bound that I could not even find any discernable planting medium around the roots at all. Using a hand cultivator, I literally muscled some side roots and some of the bottom roots loose and repotted them that way. I then thoroughly soaked each one and crossed my fingers. I had hoped to transplant them this fall when it is cooler but I am not sure they will be doing well enough by then. The good news is that the needles, especially on the lower branches, are beginning to soften somewhat so I do have some hope they'll make it. After reading the suggestions provided here, I am considering wintering them where they are and transplanting in the spring - provided they survive. This leads me to another question; if they survive, I want to plant them on the side of a bank that is very rocky. I realize that Blue Spruce trees originated from rocky areas, so I am thinking of digging more than twice the depth and width of the tubs and planting them in good soil so that they can get a decent start before hitting the thinner, rocky soil. Any thoughts on this as well? Any special steps to wintering in the tubs? Again, thank you for your input.