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Sitka spruce
Picea sitchensis
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 A large tree that commonly grows up to 70 metres tall and 2 metres across when mature.
The largest known Sitka spruce is 93 metres tall and 5 metres across.
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Leaves
Needles are light green to bluish-green, stiff, and sharp. They are
four-sided but slightly flattened with two white bands running along the upper surface and
two narrower bands along the lower surface. The needles are arranged spirally along the
twig and are attached by small pegs which remain on the twig after the needles fall.Cones
Seed cones are reddish- to yellowish-brown and hang from the crown. Their
seed scales are thin, wavy, and irregularly toothed. Pollen cones are red. |
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Young Bark
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Bark
The bark is very thin, brown or purplish grey, and breaks up into small
scales. |
Where to
find Sitka spruce
It grows along the coast in a narrow band from sea level to about 700
metres. It is most common along the coastal fog-belt and river and stream flood plains. |
Habitat
In coastal forests, Sitka spruce grows with western hemlock, western
redcedar, and yellow-cedar. The forest floor is often thick with mosses, and horsetails,
blueberries and deer fern flourish. Black-tail deer abound, especially in the Queen
Charlotte Islands, where they were introduced without their natural predator, the gray
wolf. The productive floodplains along coastal valleys support grizzly and black bears as
well as many smaller mammals. |
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Uses
Aboriginal people living on the coast used Sitka spruce extensively. From
the roots, they fashioned beautiful water-tight hats and baskets. Roots also provided
materials for ropes, fishing lines, and twine to sew boxes and baskets. Some coastal
peoples ate the inner bark or the young shoots raw as a source of vitamin C. Fresh inner
bark also acts as a laxative.
The native people used softened pitch to caulk and waterproof boats, harpoons and
fishing gear. The pitch also provided an effective medicine for burns, boils, and other
skin irritants.
Sitka spruce is valued for its wood, which is light, soft, and relatively strong and
flexible. It is used for general construction, ship building and plywood. The wood has
excellent acoustic properties and is used to make sounding boards in pianos and other
musical instruments such as violins and guitars.
Notes
The Sitka spruce is frequently host to the spruce weevil. The weevil lays
its eggs in the bud at the top of the tree. If it is warm enough, the eggs hatch and the
new growth wilts and eventually dies. Cool ocean breezes and summer fog deter the weevil
and allow Sitka spruce to grow freely.
Sitka spruce has been introduced into Britain and northern Europe, where it is now
widely grown. |
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