Pendula is the blue spruce turned entirely theatrical. Staked upright, its branches weep straight down in dramatic silver-blue curtains; left unstaked, it spreads across the ground like a groundcover conifer with ideas above its station. Either way, it is a garden specimen first and foremost, rarely exceeding 2 to 6 feet without deliberate training, and its intense blue-gray color carries through every month of the year.

Plant it in full sun in acidic, well-drained soil and give it consistent moisture while young. Like all pungens selections, it can struggle in southern heat and humidity, but in zones 3 through 7 it is a reliably tough, deer-resistant presence. The absence of flowers is no loss here — the drama is entirely in the form and the color.