white spruce, Picea glauca

From a tiny acorn a mighty oak doth grow? Well from a tiny cone a whole bunch of white spruce trees will grow. And this little cone, at the fertile stage, is even smaller. This white spruce in my yard will be gone as soon as I get around to it. It keeps leaning more and more toward the house, trying to find the sunlight being stolen by a maple. White spruce may be the most commonly planted of its genus. You might know it as Alberta or Black Hills spruce. Originally a more northern tree, it has now spread more into our northern states. Here in Michigan, its native status in the south is at best questionable. White spruce grows in AK, CT, ID, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MT, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, SD, VT, WI, WY, all provinces, and on SPM. Cultivated, Lenawee Co MI, 5/3/15. Pine family, Pinaceae.