It makes a very dense pyramid of needles that are a rich, glossy green; each needle measures only 1/4" to 1/2" in length, the shortest of all cultivated spruces'. It grows in excess of 50' tall with weeping horizontal branches. This refined spruce deserves to be a specimen plant in the landscape. The developing cone is a rich red-purple, very noticeable in the spring. The Oriental spruce provides a refreshing change from the many Norway and white spruces that frequently dot the Midwestern landscape. Good alternative to Norway spruce