These dwarf Alberta spruce are very common. That's what you have.

Picea glauca var. albertiana 'Conica' is the full name.

It's not a houseplant so get it in the ground temporarily up against a building on the most protected side of a building (less wind) and throw at least 3" of mulch over the roots and beyond your planting hole. Or, put it in a garage or non-heated sun room for the winter. Check it once a month to be sure the pot isn't lightweight. If it is, water it.

Dax

for sure on the watering .... a sip and then near drying ... weight of pot is a great indicator ...

not sure about the ID ... but cant offer any better suggestions...

you have any rose cones around ....

ken

To me this looks more like a Pinus pinea, Italian Stone Pine. Unfortunately it won't work in USDA Zone 5.

It's not a spruce it's a pine with juvenille foliage. Pinus pinea probably right. It isn't cold hardy and eventually a really big tree.

if its pinea .... a rose cone wont make a difference ...

conica ... has two one inch growth spurts per year .... this one looks like it grew 3 to 6 inches ....

keep it indoors for winter... enjoy it ... see if you can get it thru to late spring ....

its probably not going to like lack of humidity in furnace world .... and .. as a pine.. full sun is preferred ... so that will be another struggle...

not to mention is was probably greenhouse grown ... so there is some level of hardening off shock.. from the perfect world of such to your dry dark house... plus i think you imply it travels from CA ...

and keep in mind .... to repeat... do not water it like a common houseplant... let it nearly dry in between waterings ... and take not that that foil wrapper might not allow proper draining ...

a fun experiment... learn ... but dont tie all your hopes and dreams into it ...

ken

There seems to be a little tap dancing going on here but the bottom line is that with only a couple of semi-tropical exceptions, conifers do not make good houseplants. Conditions indoors are very much NOT to their liking - too dry, too hot and light levels too low. Tabletop Christmas trees (like this one) or even living Christmas trees are suggested as only very temporary indoor residents, usually just a few days to a week at most. Longer than that and they start deteriorating rapidly.

Since your little pine is not expected to survive outdoors in your climate, enjoy it for as long as you can indoors but be prepared to toss it when it starts going downhill. Keep it in the coolest location indoors you can manage and in the brightest light. Get rid of the foil wrapping and rather than allowing it to dry between waterings, I would make sure the soil stays evenly moist - never overly wet but not too dry, either.

I would pot it up in a larger container. Easier to keep it at the right moisture levels that way.

Mike

Yep, a Stone Pine Pinus pinea. Indoors only in winter in Illinois; it can be made into a good bonsai if that's of interest.

Resin

Well as bonsai, generally people keep them juvenille for that spruce type foliage. When you grow them out from that condition there is an awkward stage of a mix of very long green needles and short blue ones. Also, theRe will be large knots at every whorl which makes for reverse taper (a big bonsai no-no) and you'll need a trunk before it can be a decent bonsai.... good luck

As others have said here, pines are not a good indoor plant. Why not just plant it outdoors right now? I's a good time of year to.

It's a zone 8 plant it will not last a single winter in chicago