The Norway Spruce is readily identified by its dark green needles and drooping branchlets. Trees have dark green crown with a triangular shape. Needles are 4-sided (rectangular in section), 1/2-1 inch long, and sharp or somewhat blunt at the tip.

Although sometimes confused with true firs, spruces in general have 1) rectangular rather than flat needles, and 2) cones which hang down rather than stand erect on the stem.

Picture and facts courtesy of The National Christmas Tree Growers Association.