Picea x fennica was first described in 1934 by (Regel) Vladimir Leontyevich Komarov (1869-1945), in Flora of the USSR, vol. 1. It is a natural hybrid of Norway spruce (Picea abies) and Siberian spruce (Picea obovata) and is commonly known as Karelian or Finnish spruce. It is the dominant conifer of the northern Taiga of European Russia (Arkhangelsk, Karelia, Kola Peninsula and Komi) as well as Finland. The Karelian spruce has the small seed cones of Picea obovata and the seed-scale shape and margins of Picea abies.
