Spruce Tips: The First Foraged Flavor of Spring

When the snow finally starts to melt and the first hints of green show up across the forest floor, most foragers know exactly what they’re watching for: spruce tips.

These vibrant little bursts of citrusy flavor are one of the earliest—and easiest—wild foods to forage in spring, especially here in Northwestern Ontario. Packed with nutrients and surprisingly versatile in the kitchen, spruce tips are the kind of ingredient that makes you feel like you’ve finally shaken off winter and stepped into something alive again.

In this post, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know: how to find spruce tips, harvest them properly, what they taste like, and what to do with them once you’ve got a basket full.

What Are Spruce Tips?

Spruce tips are the soft, bright green new growth that appears on spruce trees in spring. These tender shoots grow at the ends of branches and are usually wrapped in a papery brown husk when they first emerge. If you’ve ever walked through the bush and noticed a spruce tree with fresh, neon-green ends, you were looking at spruce tips in their prime.

They’re not just pretty to look at—they’re edible. And they taste like spring.

Why Spruce Tips Are a Spring Foraging Favorite

There are a few reasons spruce tips are beloved by foragers:

• They’re everywhere – spruce trees are common across the north.

• They’re easy to identify – especially compared to mushrooms or more technical plants.

• They pack a ton of flavor and nutrients.

• They show up early – right when the forest starts waking up.

When not much else is available, spruce tips are a bright green sign that it’s time to start gathering again.

Where and When to Find Spruce Tips

Spruce tips usually appear between late April and early June, depending on the weather. Around here, I typically start spotting the earliest tips in the second or third week of May.

Look for spruce trees along logging roads, trails, or forest edges. Spruce are easy to recognize:

• Short, stiff, sharp needles

• A classic cone-shaped growth

• Flaky or scaly bark

The tips are brighter green than the rest of the tree and are soft enough to pinch off with your fingers.

How to Identify Spruce Trees and Their Tips

There are a few different types of spruce here in Ontario, with white spruce and black spruce being the most common—and both are edible.

If you’re unsure:

• Roll a needle between your fingers. If it rolls, it’s a spruce (spruce needles are square).

• If the needle is flat and doesn’t roll, it’s probably a fir.

Spruce tips grow at the ends of branches and will stand out because they’re softer, lighter green, and usually pointing slightly upward.

Foraging Etiquette and Sustainability Tips

Before harvesting anything wild, always ask yourself: can I do this without harming the plant or the ecosystem?

Here’s how to forage spruce tips responsibly:

• Take only one or two tips per branch

• Skip small or struggling trees

• Harvest from multiple trees to avoid over-harvesting

• Leave plenty for wildlife—and other foragers

• Never forage in parks or protected areas unless it’s clearly allowed

A good forager leaves no trace. If someone walked by after you, they shouldn’t even notice you were there.

How to Harvest Spruce Tips Properly

No fancy gear needed—just a basket or bag, and maybe scissors if the tips are firm.

What to look for:

• Bright green

• Soft and flexible

• 1–2 inches long

Gently pinch or snip them off right where the new growth meets the old branch. If they’re resinous and sticky, they’re past their prime. Only take what you’ll use—spruce tips are best fresh, and they’ll keep in the fridge for about a week.

What Do Spruce Tips Taste Like?

The best way I can describe it: a cross between lemon, pine, and rosemary. They’re bright, citrusy, and slightly floral. Some people say they taste like the forest smells in spring.

Young tips are tender and mellow, while older ones can be more resinous and strong. If you’re eating them raw, stick to the youngest growth.

Health Benefits of Spruce Tips

Aside from being tasty, spruce tips are:

• High in vitamin C

• Anti-inflammatory

• Traditionally used for respiratory health

• Rich in antioxidants and minerals

They’ve been used in teas, tinctures, and salves by Indigenous peoples for generations—and for good reason.

How to Use Spruce Tips in the Kitchen

Spruce tips are surprisingly versatile. You can:

• Add them raw to salads or slaws

• Blend them into butter or soft cheese

• Infuse them in vinegar, honey, or oil

• Make a bright syrup for cocktails or soda

• Use them in baking (yes, really—shortbread or muffins!)

• Candy them for forest-themed treats

They pair well with honey, lemon, berries, and wild game.

Favorite Spruce Tip Recipes

Here are some of my personal favorites:

Spruce Tip Syrup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups spruce tips

• 2 cups water

• 2 cups sugar

Directions:

1. Simmer tips in water for 15 minutes.

2. Strain out the solids.

3. Add sugar to the liquid and simmer until dissolved.

4. Store in a jar in the fridge.

Use in lemonade, sparkling water, cocktails, or over pancakes.

Spruce Tip Vinegar

Add a handful of spruce tips to a mason jar of apple cider vinegar. Let it infuse for 2–3 weeks, then strain. It’s perfect for dressings or marinades.

Spruce Tip Butter

Chop fresh tips finely and mix into softened butter with lemon zest and a pinch of salt. It’s unreal on biscuits or grilled fish.

Candied Spruce Tips

Boil tips in simple syrup for 10 minutes, then roll in sugar and dry on a tray. Use as a garnish or snack.

Preserving Spruce Tips

Want to stretch your harvest into the rest of the year? Here’s how:

• Freeze them: Spread on a tray, then bag once frozen.

• Dry them: Great for teas or infusions.

• Ferment in honey: Let it bubble on its own into a spruce-honey elixir.

• Infuse in vinegar or oil.

Freezing keeps the flavor best, but any of these work depending on how you want to use them.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Harvesting too late: They get tough and bitter fast.

• Stripping one tree: Always spread your harvest out.

• Mixing up spruce with fir or pine: Not dangerous, but they taste different.

• Using too many at once: Start small—these are bold little things.

Fun Facts and Traditional Uses

• Indigenous peoples used spruce tips for tea, medicine, and food flavoring.

• Early settlers made spruce beer to ward off scurvy.

• Captain Cook even used spruce beer on his voyages.

• The inner bark of spruce trees has also been used in traditional remedies.

There’s something deeply satisfying about foraging the first green thing after a long, cold winter. Spruce tips are one of those simple pleasures that make you slow down, pay attention, and reconnect with the land.

They’re easy to find, easy to identify, and full of flavor and nutrition. And they remind you that even after the longest winter, something fresh and green is always just around the corner.

So grab a basket, get out in the bush, and see what’s popping up. The forest has something to offer—you just have to go find it.