i use generic RUp ... aka credit ... hundreds of properly mixed gallons per year ... you will have to coat about 75% of the entire tree to kill it ... it has no effect once it hits the ground.. and no effect on any part of the tree that is not green i have a 200 foot bank of juniper.. which i spot spray to kill various weeds growing through it ... no impact on it ... practice with your sprayer with water on the driveway .... VERY LOW PRESSURE....this aint french perfume .... find out how many pumps.. and how to adjust the nozzle .. so that DROPS come out ... drops are affected by gravity ... and fall to the earth ... mist can blow in the wind ... when you can do such.. properly mix some credit set the wand at the one foot mark .. nearly on the ground ....and spray toward the plant .... angling so as to avoid as much contact as possible on the plant .... go once around.. and then move on ... a week or two later .... perhaps with an assistant .... go back to work under the plants .... they either lift low branches.. or use a hockey stick to move things out of the way .. and spray the things under the plants ... and dont worry about letting the branches fall back on top of the sprayed area .... i have found .... by breaking the job into 2 parts.. that my concentration is higher.. resulting in less overspray ... in a worse case scenario .... make the mix in a bucket.. some good rubber chemical gloves.. and a washcloth ... and reach under the tree and swab what under there .. pulling toward you ... once you get the stuff out of there.. it will tend not to grow back and maintenance will be much easier ... and most important.. remember not to walk across sprayed areas .. until it is dry .. or you will have mysterious brown dead spots in your lawn.. the size of your shoes ... pic below.. i have maintained this row of GG since they were 2 inch peat pots with 4 inch rootings in 2002 ... and NEVER USED A WEED WHIP ON THEM .. good luck ken PS: if you get the inclination to sneeze.. put down the sprayer.. and step away ... or swat bugs.. trust me... lol ... drops flying everywhere ... if there is an error.. spray down the foliage ASAP ... and respray when it is dry .... PPS: and what about that giant neighbor tree.. is it a maple????

thanx, guys! i waited until it was all over and done with and then told ted i had the power of the forum behind me and therefore he was at a real disadvantage, poor guy. and yes, it was my 3rd year. but i have to say he won the TWO previous seasons! and you caught me, david. our mascot "yoda" is not furry--that's simply my lack of housekeeping skills. he was actually carved with a chainsaw from a block of wood and was a birthday present to ted a number of years ago. the pickles were really rather tasty--even with that strange color--and the wine was very cold and dry, just as it should be! but let me tell you that there isn't much better than that wheelbarrel ride around the yard!!! unfortunately i had to forgo it this year as ted strained his back a couple days ago and i couldn't get any of our neighbors to volunteer...harumph! strange neighborhood we live in :) anyway, thanx for your support guys--we do have fun with this!

Beng: Right, Rothkugel is the earliest forest planting. And, it was a planting that mixed the spruce with European larch, and black locust. As a result, the trees are in places scattered or in small groups. but, they are in a forest, and are the oldest such trees. Yes, NS were planted here way back in colonial times, but few of these trees survive, or can be documented to be from that period without core samples being taken. The oldest one--I think--that I knew of near here was at the old house at Morven Park in Leesburg, VA. But, when they did a renovation/restoration of the house, they took no care to protect the grand old tree, so it's now gone. Of course, its planting may not have been at the time of the building of the house, but If I were to take a guess, I would say that tree dated back to at least the 1880's. I consider its loss to be a great shame, and am astonished that care was not taken to protect it, and its root system, during the work. The view of it from one of the upper rooms was wonderful! The first "extensive" planting of Norway spruce in this country happened as a result of the Colombian Exposition of 1893. What I know about this is sketchy, and I am not sure how to get verification, but here goes anyway: the story I heard is that at the German Pavilion, they handed out little seedlings to anyone that wanted them, and that they also told about the tradition in Germany of a young married couple planning "bride and groom" trees in front of their house--a pair. You can still see this in front of many old homes, although they are gradually disappearing, with one or more dying, or the houses being removed, or renovated, with no protection given to the trees. Many of these pairs of trees are quite old, and could date from that year. When I travelled in England a number of years ago, I saw extensive forest plantings of Sitka spruce. I don't think they are hardy here. They planted one at the VA Arboretum, but it didn't survive. I have spent a number of years on the West coast, and explored the forests of the Pacific NW, and saw some of the giant Sitka spruce trees, some 300 feet tall, and up to, and maybe over, 17 feet in base diameter. --Spruceman

Every entertainment product is "for profit". Even "non-profit" ones like NPR or PBS. No one works for nothing. As above, I don't watch the show regularly but I have at times in the past (as when my kid's friend was on). Frequently there's a clue, sometimes in the category title and sometimes in the brief words given, that provides a hint for what the answer is. The more successful contestants seem to be attentive to them. One example I've just made up might be in the category of Flowers, the question "Long Civil War in England" for which the response would be "What is War of the Roses". Answering the question successfully can be more a matter of solving the clue, not necessarily as in this case a mastery of English history. I recall several times seeing what appeared to be guesses offered in response that seemed like the contestant was acting on the clue, not a recollection of the subject matter. Like many "contests", there's an element of gamesmanship that can contribute to doing well and I think careful attention to the clues is among the tactics that make a difference.