We get a lot of questions about White Spruce trees and we’d like to address how a White Spruce differs from the Colorado Spruce, Norway Spruce and the very closely related, Black Hills Spruce. First and foremost, the White Spruce is full-shade tolerant, whereas the Blue Spruce & Norway Spruce are not. This is ideal for someone who wants an evergreen tree, but only has partial sunlight. Next, the mature size of a White Spruce is smaller compared to the Norway & Blue Spruces, making it a great fit for smaller landscapes or areas with a tight fit. The White Spruce is a little slower growing than the Norway Spruce, but is faster growing than the Colorado Blue Spruce and is hardier and more disease resistant. Furthermore, the White Spruce has blueish/green needles, very similar to the Colorado Blues, minus the sharp needles. While they are very similar, there are some subtle differences between the Black Hills Spruce and the White Spruce.
The Black Hills spruce is a subspecies of the White Spruce. The Black Hills foliage is a little denser and brighter and it has a slower growth rate. As you can see the White Spruce is a very versatile tree that is hardy, shade tolerant, disease resistant and fast growing.