Yep, Picea glauca 'Conica' is right.

Resin

first off.. a gentle ribbing.. picea is spruce.. and you said you thought it might be a pine .... lol ... i have been at the level of the learning curve ...

i doubt there is any pine with needles that short ... for sure.. that you would find in a common store .... those botansists can always come up with some oddity ....

anyway ... it does NOT need to go in the fridge.. that is way overthinking this ...

all i would do ... Is harden it off to direct sun ...

its bulletproof in my z5.. which is to MINUS 25 F in winter ... crikey man... it isnt going to mind z8 ...

put in full shade for a few days.. outdoors.. then move towards sun ... or whatever you call it over the pond ... it isnt like z8 sun in the US ... you are so far north ... 2/3 of the way to the north pole.. i bet you need not even harden it off to sun ...

try using the HTML code.. rather than IMG codes... and on preview.. if you see it.. we will see it ...

i have no clue why the tag says such ... i would bet they sell yard plants for more money than xmas trees... and dont want you to know that ... lol

ken

Thanks Ken.

Yes, I'm new to conifers. Thanks for the advice. I guess I'am over thinking it. The coldest my county saw in the last few decades was 0F (-17c) about two years ago.
What is the difference between pines and spruce by the way? Are they separate genus or is it based on needles?

{{gwi:846783}}

What is the difference between pines and spruce by the way?

==>>> same as the difference between apples an oranges ....

i dont know the fancy botany words.. i would say different species ... and i would say.. different families of trees ... of which conifers are ...

let me see if i can find a primer on conifers... see link ... looks like my choice of words is NOT scientific.. lol ... third paragraph ... different genus ... go figure ...

come back often ... we can enable you ... there is even blue spruce steven somewhere in Britain ... if you wanted to visit a real conifer garden ...

they come in all sizes.. and with the selection of MINIs out there.. even the most land handicapped people.. can grow conifers ...

before i forget again ... this plant of yours.. will be easily 10 feet tall.. in the next decade or so .. whats this window box idea??? ..just temporary ... ??? .. at the same link.. look at conifer sizes.. and learn about ANNUAL GROWTH RATE ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

"What is the difference between pines and spruce by the way?"

"==>>> same as the difference between apples an oranges ...."

More like the difference between apples and pears. Pines and spruces are in different genera, but are fairly close relatives in the same family (along with firs, cedars, larches, etc.). "Apples and oranges" would be more comparable to e.g. pines and junipers - much more different.

Resin

Ken,

I thought Picea Glauca conica was supposed to be a dwarf variety, I thought perhaps 3 foot in ten years so thought it would be okay in a window box for at least 5.

I see a lot of small conifers in pots and window boxes, I'm still not great on species, but I think some are Chinese juniper and lots of "Goldcrest" (I think it's Monterrey Cypress - never seen any above 3 foot, never seen old ones. Not sure if they're new in this country or just not hardy enough).
I'm looking for other dwarf conifers that will be good in a window box for about 5 years or so, I don't like Goldcrest.

I'm looking for other dwarf conifers that will be good in a window box for about 5 years or so,

Unless you have an unusually large window box, it's not gonna happen :0( Window boxes tend to have extremely limited space, both with regards to width and depth and that has the same limiting effect on plant growth as does leaving the plant in a too small container indefinitely - root constriction, excessive drying, stunting, etc.

Can you keep the dwarf Alberta spruce in a window box for a season or two? Sure, provided you water as necessary and supplement with fertilizer. But these guys will outgrow that space after about 18-24 months and will need to be removed and replanted in the ground. Or replaced entirely.

You might be better off with something like a dwarf boxwood that can be trimmed/sheared into a conical tree-like form. These grow soooo slowly they tend not outgrow even a window box for many years.