Picea pungens 'Procumbens'

Low, wide, and thoroughly blue. Picea pungens 'Procumbens' is a groundhugging Colorado blue spruce that trades the species' familiar Christmas tree form for something far more useful in the garden—a dense, spreading carpet of silver-blue foliage that tops out around 2 feet tall but runs considerably wider over time. The color is the real draw: that cool, icy blue holds all year and earns its keep in every season.

This is a plant that rewards a good site. Give it full sun and excellent drainage and it will settle in and persist for decades. It handles heat, tolerates drought once established, and asks very little in return. The rigid, prickly texture is a feature rather than a flaw—it reads as structure, and it contrasts sharply with softer, finer-textured companions. Plant it where the foliage can be appreciated at close range: at the front of a slope, anchoring a corner, spilling over a wall.

What it won't tolerate is a bad position. Shade produces thin, weak growth. Poor drainage shortens its life. And because it's slow, putting it somewhere it can't thrive is a long-term loss. Site it right from the start.

A mature specimen in the right site is something to see—low and wide, the blue deepening over time, the spreading form filling a corner or anchoring a slope in a way no upright conifer can. This is a plant that rewards patience and a well-chosen position.