Blue Spruce (Colorado Spruce) vs Pacific Silver Fir

Blue Spruce, also known as Colorado Spruce, is our best selling tree! People are attracted to the distinctive blue-green color of this hardy evergreen. But Blue Spruce really stands out because it is tough, long lived, and adapted to a wide range of growing conditions. Blue Spruce trees are ideally suited for use in shelterbelts, privacy screens, or as accent trees.

Please note: our Blue Spruce are grown from seed and the needles vary in color from green to blue.

Pacific Silver Fir is a tall evergreen tree native to the Pacific Northwest. It has two-toned needles, dark green on top with silvery undersides, giving the tree a distinctive appearance. The straight trunk and dense, symmetrical crown make it a striking forest species.

Pacific Silver Fir thrives in cool, moist, high-elevation forests. It is the most shade-tolerant of the true firs and among the most shade-tolerant of all native conifers, allowing it to grow beneath the canopy of older trees. It provides cover for wildlife and food from its seeds, while also contributing to the structure and stability of mountain forest ecosystems.

The species is harvested for timber and pulp and has been used ornamentally in some plantings. Well-suited for ecological restoration, naturalization, and habitat projects where native conifers are needed. Pacific Silver Fir lives up to its Latin name, amabilis, meaning “lovely,” in recognition of its striking appearance.

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