Latest Spruce Stories

Dramatic shifts in the planet's climate and geography over millions of years changed the course of evolutionary history for conifer trees, according to a Yale paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Yale researchers examined the fossil record and genetic makeup of 489 out of more than 600 living conifer species and discovered that while most conifers belong to ancient lineages, most Northern Hemisphere species, including the majority of pines and spruces, appeared...

[ Watch the Video] Until now, it was presumed that the last glacial period denuded the Scandinavian landscape of trees until a gradual return of milder weather began and melted away the ice cover some 9000 years ago. That perspective is now disproved by research headed by Professor Eske Willerslev from the Centre for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, Laura Parducci from the University of Uppsala, Sweden, and Inger Greve Alsos from Tromsø University Museum, Norway. Their...

Spruce Mountain Guest Ranch of Larkspur, CO, has been honored with a recognition by Colorado Meetings & Events in its selection of "2011 Best Of The Industry Awards." LARKSPUR, Colo., Jan. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Announcing a special recognition appearing in the March, 2011 issue of Colorado Meetings & Events published by Tiger Oak Publications, Inc., Spruce Mountain Guest Ranch was selected for the following honor:"2011 Best Of The Industry Awards" (Photo:...

Earlier springs could enhance xylem growth in black spruce"”but colder summers could negate thatWith an increasingly warmer climate, there is a trend for springs to arrive earlier and summers to be hotter. Since spring and summer are the prime growing seasons for plants"”when flowers bloom and trees increase in girth and height"”do these climate changes mean greater seasonal growth for plants? This is a critical question for forest management, especially in the boreal region"”an area...

The natural product wood grows in locations with different climate, soil and environmental conditions. These differences influence its properties as construction material: "Scandinavian spruce, for instance, has smaller knots and lower raw densities than spruce coming from central Europe, and this results in different strength and stiffness values," explains Professor Jan-Willem van de Kuilen from the Department of Wood Technology at TUM. That is why, to ensure the stability of...

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The newly restored Philadelphia Vietnam Veterans Memorial (PVVM) at Penns Landing will be unveiled on Veterans Day, Nov. 11 at noon at Front and Spruce streets. The unveiling concludes two years of fund-raising for the $500,000 project necessitated by 21 years of wear and damage from the weather, general use and vandalism. "In many ways, this effort by the PVVM Fund Board of Directors has resulted in virtually a brand new Memorial that will...

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Contractors are laying paving material this week that will transform the Philadelphia Vietnam Veterans Memorial as part of the first phase of the restoration and preservation project for the Penn's Landing landmark at Front and Spruce Streets. The material, which will resemble granite pavers, is being poured throughout the week and replaces the bricks that have been in place since the Memorial was dedicated 21 years ago. Weather and wear had caused...

Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose and Aero-Mobile are reunited after decades apart. Howard Hughes' 1936 Lincoln Limousine Concept Car 'Custom Aero-Mobile' Found! GRANTS PASS, Ore., May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose and Aero-Mobile Reunited *1936-37 "Aero-Mobile" on display now at* Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum 500 NE Captain Michael King Smith Way McMinnville, Oregon 97128 After a weeklong reunion, the "Aero-Mobile" will be leaving the Spruce Goose at...

A Washington state man ordered to tear down an elaborate tree house overlooking a river can keep it after reaching a compromise, county officials say. King County officials had earlier ordered Pete Nelson, of Fall City, Wash., to remove his high-end tree house, built with cedar siding and maple floors, because the Sitka spruce it was perched in was too close to the Raging River and presented a flooding danger, the Seattle Times reported. But after their order to demolish the structure drew...

Scientists have found that the ground is drying out in a 13,700-year-old peat bog, just another sign, they say, of the Earth's warming climate. Ecologist Ed Berg says the peat bog is turning into forest."There has been a big change," Berg said. Core samples taken from the bog show moss nearly 22 feet under the ground, with no sign of trees or shrubs growing here for centuries, Berg said.The bog could be covered by black spruce trees during the next 50 years, he said.Alaska is one...