difference between a spruce and a fir tree
What is the difference between spruce trees and fir trees? The way that I remember which grows up and which grows down is that I remember the s in spruce means that the cones spray the ground. One of the best and easiest ways to tell the difference between a true spruce and fir tree is to look at the tree's cones. When mature, the cones on a fir tree stand straight up (point towards the sky) while the mature cones on a spruce grow down towards the ground from the bottom side of the branch. The way that I remember which grows up and which grows down is that I remember the s in spruce means that the cones spray the ground. Pine, Fir or Spruce Tree? The leaves of conifers are of course their needles. On true pine trees, the needles are arranged and attached to the branches in clusters of two (red pine group), three (yellow pine group), or five (white pine group) needles per cluster. Spruce and fir trees have their needles attached individually to the branches. To tell spruce and fir trees apart, it helps to know that spruce needles are sharply pointed, square and easy to roll between your fingers. Fir needles, on the other hand, are softer, flat and cannot be rolled between your fingers. Spruce needles are attached to small, stalk-like woody projections. When needles are shed, these projections remain. As a result, the branches of spruce trees feel rough.