Picea Glauca Densata (Black Hills Spruce)

The Black Hills Spruce (Picea Glauca Densata), a member of the evergreen family, has been the official state tree of South Dakota since 1947.

As its name implies, it is native to and found throughout The Black Hills which straddles sections of both South Dakota and Wyoming. It probably colonized the Hills 500,000 years ago when the glacial periods were occurring.

The pyramid-shaped tree is characterized by dense foliage of short, blue-green needles and slender cones.  The Black Hills Spruce is a very long-lived species with a life span of 150 to 350 years.

The Black Hills Spruce's leaves are evergreen, 1/3 to 3/4 inches long, with 4-sided needles that are bright to bluish green.

Male cones can be either erect or hanging and produce pollen that is wind-borne. The female cone is narrow, oblong, and about 1 to 2 inches long.

Twigs are orange-brown to gray. The bark is thin and flaky, usually ash-gray in color.

The wood of the Black Hills Spruce is light, soft, and straight-grained and it has very few serious pests. This is one reason that its greatest value is as an ornamental or as a windbreak. The color is attractive and the dense, conical form is popular in landscape design.

The Picea Glauca Densata is very tolerant of alkaline soils and drying winter winds.

The two national champion Black Hills spruce trees are in South Dakota. One is near Terry Peak Lodge. It is 113  inches in circumference, 86 feet tall and has a crown spread of 30 feet.  The other co-champion is in The Black Hills National Forest along Bear Butte Creek. It is 98 inches in circumference, 96 feet tall and has a crown spread of 28 feet (8.5 m).