Spring is ideal but early fall is fine too. The trick is to ensure its well watered prior to the first freeze.

Abies DEMANDS well drained soil. They can really struggle in wet soils when the snow melts if its not draining well. This is the very reason you will "rarely" see this plant growing in clay soils successfully.

I learned the hard way that as a species there are seed variants (hopefully that is the right terminalogy) and therefore there are various shades of blue, silver and green. My neighbor has one that is turqouise and mine are green. I bought them in March and asked why the plant looked so green and he said it will be blue when it flushes...not what a lieing jag off. Obviously you'd have more control with selected cutlivars. Avoid 'Candicans'. It has awesome cones and needle color but they are very thin, gangly looking plants. Its been consistent in the ones I've seen in person.

My neighbors plant. Congrats on your first potential conifer. Be sure to venture over to that forum.

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hey

conifers are trees.. so all the rules are the same ...

buy a named variety ... as they will be superior in color and/or form ...

the standard electric blue is candicans ... but there are variations on a theme .. like blue cloak ...some complain that candicans gets ugly as the decades flow ...

there are also some dark steel blues.. like conica .. which is much more fastigate ...

there is also a winter yellow version ...

there are also minis ...

the most exciting thing.. two things.. is the smell of the crsuhed needle.. i am not going to tell you what it is .. lol ...

and the blue cones on candicans ... see pic

welcome to a new addiction .. lol.. just do the same as what you have done with your hundreds of trees you have recently planted.. and you should be all set ...

ken
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and a pic a birder friend of mine captured ...
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Here is a link that might be useful: check out link for abies cones .. including my concolor cones