The Norway Spruce is a fast grower, if left to their own devices they can grow 2-3ft per year. When we’re growing them for Christmas, however, we tend to train the tree to direct all it’s growing energy to achieve a nice bushy shape rather than shooting upwards.
It’s speedy growth and hardiness make the Norway Spruce a popular choice for timber. The timber is smooth, strong and light in colour and is often used by carpenters to make joists, rafters and floorboards.
As they get taller, the trees change a little in appearance. That’s why the Spruce in Trafalgar Square (donated each year by the city of Oslo to the people of London as a token appreciation for support in World War II) might look like a different tree altogether to the one in your sitting room. Beyond about 20 feet, the foliage tends to hang or droop more from the branches, where on younger trees it’ll look a bit more upright. You might also see long cones hanging down from the taller Spruces. It’s also obviously much harder to look after a tree that’s 20ft tall, so you’re less likely to see the perfect pyramid shape you’re used to.
If you’re struggling to identify your tree as a Norway Spruce, take a look at the needles. They should be around an inch long and, if you take one and look closely, you should notice it has four distinct sides (unlike needles of firs, and of the Serbian Spruce, which are flat).