Picea

Picea is a genus of evergreen conifers in the family Pinaceae, commonly known as spruces. Native to cool temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere, species occur in Europe, Asia, and North America. The genus includes about 35 species used for timber, pulp, and ornament.

Spruces are typically tall, single-trunk trees with a conical crown. Needles are slender, stiff, four-sided, about 5–20 mm long, attached singly on short shoots with small woody pegs. Cones are pendulous and elongated; scales detach and seeds are wind-dispersed. Unlike true firs, spruce cones disintegrate on the tree after maturation.

They prefer cool climates and well-drained, acidic soils. They are important commercially for timber and pulp, and widely cultivated as ornamentals, windbreaks, and Christmas trees. Pests such as spruce bark beetles and budworms, and diseases threaten stands; climate change affects distribution and growth.

Notable species include Picea abies (Norway spruce), Picea glauca (white spruce), Picea pungens (Colorado blue spruce), Picea sitchensis (Sitka spruce), Picea mariana (black spruce), and Picea omorika (Serbian spruce).

The genus name derives from Latin picea, related to pitch, describing resinous wood.