Picea abies 'Pseudo-Maxellii' is a dwarf, irregular-globose, strongly growing selection of Norway spruce with horizontal branching and dense, radially arranged yellowish green needles. As plants grow into maturity, they will first assume more of a beehive shape as apical shoots strengthen, then finally develop a proper lead shoot becoming an irregular, densely pyramidal small tree.
After 10 years of growth, a mature specimen will measure 4.5 feet (1.5 m) tall and wide, an annual growth rate of 4 to 6 inches (10 - 15 cm).
This cultivar's origin is speculative at best. Murray Hornibrook speculates in his 1923 book, Dwarf and Slow-growing Conifers, that 'Pseudo-Maxwellii' is derived from P. abies 'Maxwellii' cuttings sent to Europe from the U.S.. Inexplicably, these "European Maxwellii's" grew with a more upright and open habit.
