PLANT FINDER
Firefly Golden Spruce
Picea orientalis 'Firefly'
Height: 10 feet
Spread: 5 feet
Sunlight:
Hardiness Zone: 4a
Other Names: Dwarf Oriental Spruce
Brand: Iseli Nursery
Description:
An outstanding tree for home landscape use, with bright yellow new growth in spring which eventually fades to gold, over green interior foliage; a compact habit makes it ideal as a color accent in smaller landscape areas
Ornamental Features
Firefly Golden Spruce is a dwarf conifer which is primarily valued in the landscape or garden for its distinctively pyramidal habit of growth. It has attractive gold foliage with green undersides which emerges yellow in spring. The needles are highly ornamental and turn chartreuse in the fall, which persists throughout the winter. The rough brown bark adds an interesting dimension to the landscape.
Landscape Attributes
Firefly Golden Spruce is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a distinctive and refined pyramidal form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage.
This is a relatively low maintenance shrub. When pruning is necessary, it is recommended to only trim back the new growth of the current season, other than to remove any dieback. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Firefly Golden Spruce is recommended for the following landscape applications;
- Accent
- Vertical Accent
- General Garden Use
Planting & Growing
Firefly Golden Spruce will grow to be about 10 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 5 feet. It has a low canopy, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 70 years or more.
This shrub should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
