Classification DNA analyses have shown that traditional classifications based on the morphology of needle and cone are artificial. A 2006 study found that P. breweriana had a basal position, followed by P. sitchensis, and the other species were further divided into three clades, suggesting that Picea originated in North America. The oldest record of spruce that has been found in the fossil record is from the Early Cretaceous (Valanginian) of western Canada, around 136 million years old.
Classification DNA analyses have shown that traditional classifications based on the morphology of needle and cone are artificial A 2006 study found that P breweriana had a basal position followed by P sitchensis and the other species were further divided into three clades suggesting that Picea originated in North America The oldest record of spruce that has been found in the fossil record is from the Early Cretaceous (Valanginian) of western Canada around 136 million years old